Call for action after 2 kids, grandmother hit by vehicle outside Wheeling school

A crash that injured three pedestrians, including two children, during morning drop-off Friday at London Middle School in Wheeling is the latest example of unsafe driving by adults on campus, a school leader said Sunday.

“Adults need to start being more conscious of the safety of our students that are coming to and from school, point blank,” said Michael Connolly, superintendent of Wheeling Township Elementary School District 21.

Connolly said the vehicle reportedly was moving through the pickup/drop-off lane toward the exit about 7:55 a.m. Friday when it hit an elementary school student who had attended an early morning program at the middle school, the student’s grandmother and another child.

Wheeling police Chief Jamie Dunne said via email that all of those injured, including an infant, were taken to a hospital for treatment and released later Friday.

“My understanding is all of them were awake and speaking and conscious,” Connolly added.

Two Wheeling police officers were nearby at the time, one of them just 20 feet away from the crash scene, along with school personnel, according to Connolly.

Connolly said there’s been a growing pattern of irresponsible behavior by adult drivers, including ignoring school personnel, on and near campus.

“We have had multiple instances of near misses, not necessarily only on our campuses, but as kids are trying to come to or from school,” he said.

The district has been working with traffic engineers, studying campus sites and seeking changes to drop off/pickup procedures and parking lot configurations to increase safety, Connolly added.

More traffic from school buses and parent vehicles also has contributed to safety concerns.

“Our campuses were designed as neighborhood schools that back in the day a lot of people walked to,” Connolly said. “That’s not really the case anymore.”

Dunne wrote that details about the crash weren’t immediately available Sunday, but echoed Connolly’s remarks concerning student safety.

“We implore anyone operating a vehicle in a school zone, whether on school property or the adjacent roadways, please pay attention to everything happening around you and your vehicle,” he wrote.