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Jacksonville school bus drops off 4-year-old with special needs at wrong school

A Jacksonville 4-year-old who has special needs was dropped off at the wrong school Wednesday morning.

His mother, Lilly Witherspoon, said she did not find out what happened until hours later.

“It was just all around scary,” said Witherspoon.

Witherspoon said the bus was supposed to drop off her son Erin at Love Grove Elementary.

Instead, she said her child was dropped off 4 miles away at Southside Estates Elementary.

“‘Hey, this is the assistant principal. I just wanted to let you know that Erin was sent to the wrong school on the bus.’ And it was just like, my heart dropped,” said Witherspoon.

Action News Jax first introduced you to Erin last year.

He has a rare disease that only affects one in one million people, familial lipoprotein lipase deficiency.

Witherspoon said her son cannot get off the bus without an assistant’s help.

She said his backpack even has a special tag.

“The tag here says his name, Erin Wright, the bus number,” said Witherspoon. “It also has the title of the school, Love Grove Elementary School.”

Action News Jax asked the school bus company, Durham School Services, what went wrong.

“We are still investigating the incident. I can confirm that the child was brought to the wrong school this morning. At no time was he left alone,” said Durham School Services spokesperson Molly Hart.

Hours after Action News Jax started asking questions, Witherspoon said she got a call from Durham School Services’ Jacksonville general manager.

She said the bus company told her they made changes to routes on Wednesday and added students to Erin’s bus, causing a mix-up.

“We take this report very seriously. The district’s Transportation Department and its bus contractor, Durham Services, are both reviewing this matter and reaching out to the parent to address her concerns. Additionally, administrators at the child’s school have also been in contact with the parent in-person and over the phone to discuss and troubleshoot her concerns,” said Duval County Public Schools spokesperson Laureen Ricks in an email to Action News Jax.

“I just want to make sure everybody knows they need to tag their babies,” said Witherspoon.

She said she now plans to buy her son’s backpack a more visible luggage tag with important information, and recommends all parents do the same.