Police say the child was in a Bath Beach crosswalk when the bus turned and drove off.
BROOKLYN, N.Y. — An 11-year-old girl was struck and killed Thursday after a school bus turned onto Bath Avenue and left the scene, police said. The collision happened just after 3 p.m. at 23rd Avenue and Bath Avenue in the Bath Beach section of Brooklyn.
Police and emergency crews responded within minutes and took the child to Maimonides Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead later Thursday. Detectives said the bus continued on after the impact and was located later in Brooklyn. By early Friday, police said they had arrested the driver and begun a full collision investigation. The case has revived long-running safety concerns at neighborhood intersections used by school buses and families during dismissal hours.
Investigators said preliminary video shows the child beginning to cross Bath Avenue in a marked crosswalk as a yellow school bus traveling south on 23rd Avenue made a right turn. The bus struck the girl and continued forward before leaving the intersection. “It is a heartbreaking scene for everyone involved,” Chief of Transportation Michael Kemper said, noting that traffic officers and the Highway Collision Investigation Squad documented the turn angle, tire marks and signal timing at the corner. Officers canvassed nearby shops for additional camera angles and interviewed witnesses, including a deli employee who said the child had visited moments earlier. The intersection remained taped off for several hours while detectives mapped the crash site and towed the bus for inspection.
Police identified the victim as Amira Aminova, 11, of Brooklyn. Officials said the driver, a 62-year-old man, was taken into custody after officers located the bus elsewhere in the borough. The man was questioned overnight and later arrested on charges that include failure to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk and failure to exercise due care, according to police. It was not immediately clear which school the bus served or how many students were on board at the time; police said the bus had children inside and that none reported injuries. Investigators said they are still working to determine whether the driver realized the bus had hit the child and why he did not stop at the scene.
The Bath Beach crash adds to a series of recent pedestrian fatalities in southern Brooklyn and comes amid citywide efforts to reduce deaths at intersections where turning vehicles hit people in crosswalks. City data show right-turn crashes remain a persistent problem in neighborhoods with broad avenues and multiple bus routes. Parents in Bath Beach and nearby Gravesend have previously raised concerns about heavy dismissal traffic along Bath Avenue, where schools, small groceries and bus depots crowd the corridor. At the same time, school bus fleets across New York City rely on private operators and subcontractors, creating a patchwork of vehicles and drivers that rotate across routes.
Detectives said the investigation will include a mechanical inspection of the 2018 Blue Bird bus involved in the crash, a review of GPS logs, and interviews with company managers and the driver. Police said any additional charges would depend on findings about speed, signal compliance and the driver’s line of sight. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner will issue the official cause of death. Police said they will also review whether the intersection’s signal timing meets standards for pedestrian crossing intervals near schools. No court date was immediately available Friday morning. Officials said they expect to release more information on Monday, including results of the bus inspection and any updates on charges.
By late afternoon Friday, candles and handwritten notes appeared along the corner, where neighbors said families often cross on their way to after-school programs and markets. “Kids run for the bus and drivers rush the light—this corner is chaos at 3 p.m.,” said Salma Rahman, who has lived nearby for two decades. A store worker who watched the aftermath said he heard a thud and people yelling for the bus to stop. “Everyone was waving and screaming,” he said. A parent walking past the memorial with two children said the block feels different now. “It’s the walk we take every day,” she said quietly.
As of Friday evening, police said the investigation remains active and the driver is in custody, with additional findings expected in the coming days. Officials said they will provide the next update after detectives analyze vehicle data and traffic camera records.
Author note: Last updated February 6, 2026.