By New York Post (U.S.) | Created at 2026-09-18 19:16:51 | Updated at 2026-09-18 20:00:45
47 minutes ago
A special needs girl died in a possible seatbelt mishap while she was sitting in her wheelchair aboard an Ohio school bus — sparking a police investigation.
Ngone Talla, 7, was lifeless in her wheelchair by her family after the school bus arrived at her home on Wednesday afternoon, her distraught relatives told WLWT5.
Talla, a student at Roselawn Condon School in Cincinnati, may have gotten stuck in a seatbelt leading up to her tragic death, sources told local outlet WXIX.
The elementary student’s family said they noticed the bus sitting idle outside the home for 10 minutes — which was unusual, since the bus’s back doors typically open to let her wheelchair out.
After her family went outside to see what was happening, they were let on the bus and discovered the youngster “lifeless.”
“We went on the bus, and I see my sister unresponsive and lifeless. So, I’m there, I’m mad. I’m yelling in the bus. I’m like, OK, how did this happen?” Marema Talla, Ngone’s 12-year-old sister, told WLWT5.
Talla, who has cerebral palsy, was taken to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Her father, Abdoul Talla, said he got a call Wednesday afternoon that his daughter was not breathing or moving and rushed over to try to help her.
“The bus driver came outside and he told them like, ‘Oh, come look.’ And they went inside the bus, and they see she was not breathing, she was not moving. And after that, that’s why they call me, and I say call 911, and I call 911, me myself,” Abdoul Talla said.
“And I drive up here and I see my daughter inside the bus and I was like ‘it’s over,'” the heartbroken dad added.
Talla suffered no traumatic injuries or signs of harm before her death, according to the Hamilton County Coroner.
“She became unresponsive in her wheelchair on the bus, but she has extensive medical history including cerebral palsy,” the coroner’s office said in a statement.
Multiple agencies, including the Cincinnati Police Department, are now investigating Talla’s death.
Cincinnati Public Schools added that their Crisis Response Unit is supporting students and staff after the “heartbreaking day.”
“Our hearts are with her family and everyone who knew and loved her. This is an unimaginable loss for them and a heartbreaking day for the Roselawn Condon community,” Cincinnati Public Schools said in a statement to the local outlets.
Talla’s family hopes officials will uncover what happened to Talla — and blasted the driver and bus monitor who were aboard the school bus for not keeping a watchful eye.
Cincinnati Public Schools told WLWT5 that a monitor from the school bus company, First Student, was on the bus, which the company also operated.
“The driver and a second person, they’re supposed to just watch carefully, the kids, because you cannot have these kids in this bus and you’re not watching them,” Abdoul Talla said.
“And it was really hot yesterday, and I don’t know what’s going on. I’m waiting for the investigation to let us know what’s happened.”
Cincinnati Public Schools, the Cincinnati Police Department, and the Hamilton County Coroner did not immediately respond to The Post’s requests for comment.
