A 7-year-old northern Minnesota boy was killed Thursday morning while crossing a state highway to reach his school bus near Thief River Falls, police said.
Anthony Fellman, a second-grader at Challenger Elementary School, was attempting to cross Hwy. 59 with his two brothers around 7 a.m. when he was struck by an oncoming minivan, said Minnesota State Patrol Sgt. Jesse Grabow.
Anthony was transported to Sanford Medical Center, where he later died. His two brothers were not hurt.
It remains unclear whether the bus had lights turned on or had extended the safety bar at the time of the incident. There are no traffic cameras in the rural area, located about 6 miles south of Thief River Falls, Grabow said.
The minivan driver, 69-year-old Joanne J. Schultz, of Plummer, Minn., immediately stopped and is cooperating with authorities. She was uninjured. Alcohol does not appear to be a factor in the crash.
A dozen other students who were on the bus saw the boy get hit.
"There's a lot of shock," said Thief River Falls Superintendent Bradley Bergstrom during a news conference Thursday afternoon. "We expect a difficult day tomorrow. A lot of our elementary kids are going to find out tonight."
Authorities and school officials have met with the boy's family. Counselors will be at the school on Friday and classes will continue "as best as possible," Bergstrom said.
