A kindergartener in Maine died after he became trapped in the doors of a school bus that dragged him nearly 300 feet before running him over, federal investigators said.
Simon Gonzalez, a 5-year-old kindergarten student at Edna Libby Elementary School in Standish, a small town about 17 miles west of Portland, died from injuries he suffered the morning of December 16, 2025, WMTW reported.
Around 8 a.m. that morning, the Bonny Eagle School District bus was at a stop in the southbound lane of Route 35, the National Transportation Board said in a report released Friday.
A 7-year-old boarded the bus at the stop while a 5-year-old approached. As the younger student neared the bus, the vehicle’s doors began to close. The student then extended his left arm into the bus and it became pinned there after the doors closed.
“The bus began to drive south on Route 35, and the student was dragged about 280 feet before he became dislodged from the door, fell to the roadway, and was run over by the bus,” the NTSB said. “As a result, the student sustained fatal injuries.”
There was only one other student aboard the bus at the time of the incident, Simon’s 7-year-old half-brother, Cumberland County Sheriff Kevin Joyce said.
“That little boy just meant the world to everyone that ever met him,” Simon’s grandfather, Jason Small, told WMTW.
His uncle, Alex Moore, added, “He had the most infectious laugh ever.”
No charges have been filed in the case.
Superintendent of Schools Clay Gleason told the outlet the school and district were “focused on healing.”
“Our thoughts and prayers remain with Simon’s family,” Gleason said.
The bus driver and the other student aboard the bus were not injured in the incident, the NTSB said.
The NTSB said the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office, Maine State Police and Maine Department of Transportation were investigating.
