5-year-old girl left alone on KinderCare bus in Arlington Heights: 'She could have died'

Jasmine Minor Image
Friday, January 17, 2025
5-year-old girl left alone on daycare bus in north suburbs
A 5-year-old girl was diagnosed hypothermic after she was left alone on a KinderCare bus in Arlington Heights, her parents and daycare officials said.

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. (WLS) -- An Arlington Heights 5-year-old girl is recovering after being left on a bus alone by her daycare Tuesday.

Her parents said KinderCare lost track of their daughter, and the mother found her on a bus hours later.

ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watch

Caitlynn Gonzalez and Wamui Mwiya, the mother and father of 5-year-old Dior said they want justice and accountability for the staff at KinderCare. They told ABC7 Dior was left on the bus for so long, she became hypothermic.

"Her body was limp," Gonzalez said. "I had to carry her almost unconscious body out of the bus."

Gonzalez found her daughter asleep on the bus at a KinderCare in Arlington Heights. She said her daughter was there for nearly three hours alone in below-freezing temperatures.

"If this was a parent that left their child in the car, you know, and this happened, I would think that they would be in jail," Gonzalez said. "I mean... somebody needs to be held responsible for this."

SEE ALSO | Richton Park mother demands answers after preschooler left on school bus for hours: EXCLUSIVE

"She could have died," Mwiya said. "She could have died today. She could be dead."

Dior's parents said the staff at KinderCare said she never got on the bus from school to daycare Tuesday afternoon, even though the school showed her being signed out.

"I'm asking them to call the police. Nobody was calling the police," Gonzalez said. "There was a missing child, and they just were not really even handling the situation."

Dior was rushed to a hospital, where she was diagnosed hypothermic. She's since been discharged and is now on the mend, but her parents are furious.

"It's hard to go back to work," Mwiya said. "You start to think, as a parent, that you made the wrong decision sending your kid there."

In a statement to ABC7 KinderCare says their bus safety protocols were not followed, and as a result the staff member involved and center director are on administrative leave.

The parents said they will never bring Dior to KinderCare again, nor any daycare, as they try to work around their full-time jobs.

"Do your best to homeschool your kid and be there more, because nobody's gonna watch them like you," Mwiya said.

The Illinois Department of Family Services has confirmed with ABC7 that they are investigating the incident.

The family announced Friday they are suing KinderCare over the incident.

KinderCare said Friday they do not comment on pending litigation, but will cooperate with investigators.

Copyright © 2025 WLS-TV. All Rights Reserved.