Classmates of a girl in Brazil watched in horror as she was killed on a bus in front of them while she was waving goodbye, according to a report.
Fernanda Pacheco Ferraz, 13, was killed in Nova Friburgo, near Rio de Janeiro, last week after she boarded a bus while leaving Professor Carlos Côrtes State College, where she was a student, and it collided with a pole, the Brazilian news outlet G1 reported.
According to witnesses, the girl put her head out of a bus window on the left side of the vehicle as she wanted to wave to her friends. At the same time, the bus inadvertently swerved into a pole on the same side where the girl was hanging out of the vehicle, killing her.
The driver of the bus said later that the road, Rua Luiz Catarcione, was particularly narrow and he was forced to turn away from a vehicle on the bus’ right side, causing it to collide with the pole.
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According to Brazilian media, passengers quickly informed the driver, Nova Faol, that the girl was hit, and he immediately stopped the vehicle.
Fernanda suffered a severe head injury and was dead before first responders arrived at the scene, G1 reported. Nova Faol promptly alerted authorities and the bus company.
Witnesses on the bus and in the immediate area confirmed the details, per the report.
The Rio de Janeiro State Department of Education released a statement mourning the student's death.
"The Secretary of State for Education deeply regrets the accident that occurred with a student from the State College Professor Carlos Côrtes, in the Catarcione neighborhood, in Nova Friburgo, on Wednesday (Aug 16), during her journey back home," the state office said.
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It also implemented a two-day mourning period, and classes at the school were suspended Thursday and Friday, Aug 17-18. They resumed on Monday, Aug. 21.
"Seeduc sympathizes with the immense pain of the family and has been providing all the assistance to it and the school community," it read.
The bus company said the driver has more than 13 years of experience.
Authorities are continuing to investigate the incident. According to the report, the driver and the bus company are cooperating.
The teen was laid to rest at the Trilha do Céu cemetery on Thursday.
It is not immediately clear if anyone will be charged in connection with the death.
