CINCINNATI — Almost two months after a 7-year-old special needs student died on her school bus in Cincinnati, an autopsy report determined her cause of death.
The Hamilton County Coroner’s Office determined Ngone Talla died due to “positional asphyxiation” and that her manner of death was accidental, according to our news partner, WCPO.
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Talla, a nonverbal child with developmental disabilities who used a wheelchair, was found unresponsive when the bus arrived at her home in September, according to a previous report.
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Her father, Abdoula Talla, had told our news partners, WCPO, that his daughter was happy and healthy when she went to school that Wednesday morning in September.
Talla’s family said the bus arrived at their home before 5 p.m., but had sat for 10 to 15 minutes before her family was asked to come on board the bus.
That’s when her 12-year-old sister, Marema Talla said she found Ngone unresponsive and motionless.
“I checked her pulse, and she wasn’t breathing,” Marema said. “So I was like panicked.”
According to the autopsy report, Ngone was sitting in a five-point harness for her wheelchair when her butt slipped off the chair as she was moving her arms and legs.
The seatbelt restraint system then compressed her right neck and chin, causing rapid asphyxiation and a loss of consciousness.
There was a “delay in care before emergency service contact,” the report said. Ngone was pronounced dead at the scene.
Ngone did not suffer any trauma to the head, torso, or extremities, per the report.
First Student issued the following statement on Monday to WCPO:
“We continue to grieve the tragic loss of Ngone Talla. Our hearts remain with her family, her loved ones, her school community and everyone who has been affected by this heartbreaking loss.We have not yet received the autopsy report. We are working to obtain and review it so we can fully understand its findings .First Student continues to cooperate fully with Cincinnati Public Schools and the authorities investigating the circumstances surrounding Ngone’s passing, and we are committed to providing whatever information and assistance they need as they work to establish the facts.”
WCPO reached out to Cincinnati Public Schools on whether the driver and the assistant on the bus are under investigation and what staffing and monitoring requirements were in place on Ngone’s bus. The district has not answered those questions.
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