Moore Kindergartener Briefly Goes Missing After School Bus Mix-Up

A mother in Moore is reunited with her child after he went missing for around an hour Tuesday.

Amber Brown said she went to pick up her child who has special needs, Ethan Harris, 5, at the bus stop when he didn’t get off the bus in the afternoon.

Harris attends Houchin Elementary School.

“I asked my neighbors kids because they are in the same elementary and they know us by now, and they said, ‘he wasn’t on the bus,’” said Brown. “I asked the bus driver and he said he wasn’t on the bus.”

It turns out, Harris was on another bus and ended up at a different apartment complex. Neighbors at that apartment complex called police.

“Thankfully somebody did call the cops because they saw that he was walking around lost,” said Brown. “I’m thankful for those cops and the people who called cause if he would have been lost, I don’t know what I would have done.”

After realizing what happened Brown said the bus driver turned around, picked Harris up, and brought him back home where his mom anxiously waited.

“I dropped to my knees and held him, it was relief,” said Brown.

Moore Public Schools released the following statement to News 9.

“Moore Public Schools (MPS) Administration was made aware that a young student exited at the wrong bus stop yesterday afternoon. While this situation is alarming, we are grateful to the individual who noticed that our student was left there and then immediately contacted the police. 

While the student was on their correct bus assignment, it was the first time he rode the bus in the afternoon and therefore was not sure where his bus stop was located. He exited with a group of other students and the bus driver was not immediately aware of what had occurred. We appreciate the school staff, bus drivers, police, and others who instantly worked together to locate the student and ensure he was returned safely to his mother.”

Brown said this isn’t the first time something like this has happened at the district.

“I just don’t want nobody else’s kids to go missing like mine did, I don’t want them to go through what I went through,” said Brown.

Parents and students can check their bus assignments online at Moore Public Schools website.