The toddler who died in a school bus crash on Friday has been identified by his school district in Texas.
Ulises Rodriguez Montoya, 5, died from injuries sustained after the school bus he was riding in was struck by a concrete truck that ended up in the bus’s lane.
The school bus, carrying 44 preschoolers from Tom Green Elementary School, had returned from a field trip to the zoo in the Texas capital.
The Texas Department of Public Safety said the cement truck struck the school bus just before the driver of a third vehicle — a Dodge Charger — crashed into the bus.
The adult male driver of the Charger also died.
Ulises Rodriguez Montoya, 5, died from injuries he suffered Friday after the school bus he was riding in was struck by a concrete truck that veered into the bus’s lane
Community members described Montoya as a “child filled with great happiness,” which he “often shared with others,” according to Naira (Dina) Solís Shears, his bilingual pre-K teacher.
“He had a talent for drawing and his favorite thing to draw was dinosaurs. He could spell the word dinosaur almost completely, which shows how smart he was.
‘For all the assignments he handed in, he always had a dinosaur drawn. He loved to tell stories and shared many of them with his friends and family. Above all, he was a loving child,” she said.
Classes at Tom Green, part of the Hays Consolidated Independent School District, were canceled Monday, although the building was open for people seeking guidance.
According to recent reportsplans for the little boy’s funeral and memorial service are still pending.
a GoFundMe launched by Ulises’ aunt has raised more than $60,000 for funerals, funerals and other unforeseen expenses the family now has to bear.
The school bus the young students were on reportedly did not have seat belts because it was manufactured in 2011, before the state of Texas mandated safety features on board such vehicles.
A statement from the school district said the family of the deceased child is “grateful for the outpouring of support, condolences and prayers from the community and people around the world.”
Montoya is survived by his immediate and extended family, including his parents, siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins – all of whom will miss him.
People are transported after a fatal school bus crash near Austin – the class of kindergarteners was returning from a visit to the zoo
A pre-Ke-er is taken from the scene of the accident by an emergency worker
Families reunite with their children at Tom Green Elementary in Buda, Texas, after the school’s pre-K students were involved in a bus crash on Texas State Highway 21 near Caldwell Road on Friday, March 22, 2024 in Bastrop, Texas
A little girl is transported Friday after a fatal school bus crash on Texas State Highway 21 near Caldwell Road
Ulises Rodriguez Montoya was remembered as a happy child who loved dinosaurs and often shared his joy with others
The school bus was built in 2011 and therefore did not have seat belts
A Texas Department of Public Safety trooper inspects the scene of the fatal school bus crash
Classes at Tom Green, part of the Hays Consolidated Independent School District, were canceled Monday — though the building was open for those seeking guidance
Dozens of other children were also transported to local hospitals after Friday’s crash.
According to a statement from Tom Green Elementary, 51 others were also injured.
a GoFundMe launched by the elementary school leadership team has raised nearly $78,000 for the devastated community. As of Sunday evening, two students and two school district employees remained hospitalized.
The accident occurred on Texas State Highway 21, about an hour’s drive from the school’s location in Buda.
Families were notified of the crash and spent agonizing hours waiting to be reunited with their children.
For many children on the bus, the accident was a tragic end to their first excursion.
According to a local KXAN reportHector Campos said receiving the call Friday that his daughter’s school bus had been in an accident was “the worst feeling in the world.”
“You never think you’d get one, and my heart immediately sank.”
The concerned father says he rushed to the crash site, where he waited for hours to see if his daughter was okay.
‘It was complete chaos there. It was very difficult,” he said. His daughter Caliana escaped the fatal crash with only a few scratches.
