A community in Wichita, Kansas, is mourning the loss of an 8-year-old girl. Harmoney Harper was waiting for her school bus when she ran in between two cars and was hit by another school bus for Derby Public Schools last week. Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office Capt. Benjamin Blick told The Wichita Eagle that she was unresponsive when first responders arrived and began to perform CPR on her. Officials later revealed that she died on the scene.
More from Mom.com: Bus Driver Charged After Crashing into Daycare, Killing 2 Kids and Injuring 6
Captain Blick told local news affiliate KAKE that no one on the bus was injured.
"We want to speak with them, and get them away from the situation as soon as possible and we worked with the folks at Derby and the school district to get them out of there. As soon as we were done gathering their information and whatever, and interviewing them about what maybe they had seen," he shared of the other children who witnessed the incident.
They were unclear about how many people were on the bus.
Harmoney's father, Jasper Harper, explained to NBC affiliate KSNW that she and his oldest son were together waiting for the school bus.
"My wife said she heard my son screaming for his sister, and she came outside. I got woke up to ‘I need you now.’ I got dressed. Before I made it to the front door, I had heard, ‘Call 911, my daughter’s dead,'" Harper said.
Harper believed that speed was an issue, saying, "She was playing outside her home, where she felt safe."
"If you live, you know, anywhere in proximity to a roadway, you have got to have this conversation with your children about the dangers of the roadway," Blick warned, sharing that he hopes Harmoney's story will teach children and parents a lesson. "You know that vehicles can't stop on a dime."
A GoFundMe has been set up for the family to cover expenses.
At the time of this writing, over $20,000 of the $50,000 goal has been raised.
"She was very happy all the time, she loved school, she loved everyone, she loved life, she was wonderful," Jasper Harper told KSNW.
"She was full of compliments for everyone around her," Donna Osborn, the principal of Harmoney's school, Oaklawn Elementary, said in a press release. "Any time you would see her, she had a smile on her face and was always the first to give everyone a hug each day. Her passing is a tremendous loss, and Harmoney will be missed greatly at Oaklawn."
Heather Bohaty, Derby Public Schools superintendent, shared that the district is working to provide resources for students and staff who may need them.
