Lake Wales adds lights at 17 school bus stops in aftermath of student's death

Gary White, Lakeland Ledger
·2 min read
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A street light has been installed at Fifth Street North and Pleasant Avenue in Lake Wales. Following the death of a boy hit by a vehicle while waiting for a bus in the darkness, the city arranged to have lights installed at all bus stops that didn't have them.
A street light has been installed at Fifth Street North and Pleasant Avenue in Lake Wales. Following the death of a boy hit by a vehicle while waiting for a bus in the darkness, the city arranged to have lights installed at all bus stops that didn't have them.

Within days after a tragedy earlier this year, Lake Wales leaders promised action.

Jadin Galindo, 13, died Feb. 3 after he was struck by a vehicle while waiting for his school bus in the pre-dawn darkness. The bus stop lacked lighting, and the driver of the vehicle told police officers she failed to see Jadin as he sat in an alley just off Dr. J.A. Wiltshire Avenue.

Lake Wales City Manager James Slaton pledged that the city would compile an inventory of school bus stops in the city and ensure that all were sufficiently lit to provide better safety for students. The city has now completed that task, Slaton said.

A survey coordinated with two school districts identified 130 bus stops, and the city determined that 17 lacked adequate lighting. Lake Wales commissioned Duke Energy to install street lights at those 17 locations, Slaton said.

“It's important to the city to make sure that our children are safe when they're going to school,” Slaton said. “I mean, it was really that simple.”

Lake Wales quickly ordered the addition of a street light at the bus stop where Jadin was struck soon after the tragedy. The boy, an eighth-grader at McLaughlin Academy of Excellence, was awaiting the morning bus near Dr. J.A. Wiltshire Avenue and Miami Road.

A street light was recently added at a school bus stop at Dorsett Avenue and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in Lake Wales The city arranged to have lights installed at all bus stops that did not already have them.
A street light was recently added at a school bus stop at Dorsett Avenue and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in Lake Wales The city arranged to have lights installed at all bus stops that did not already have them.

The driver turned right off Dr. J.A. Wiltshire Avenue and into the alley, the Lake Wales Police Department reported. The department investigated and did not cite the driver for any offenses, Deputy Chief David Black said. Jadin’s family filed a civil lawsuit against the driver, but Circuit Judge Michael McDaniel dismissed it.

The city consulted with Polk County Public Schools and the Lake Wales Charter Schools system to determine the locations of all school bus stops within Lake Wales.

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“As our community grows, it’s more important than ever to improve safety for our bus riders and pedestrians,” said Kyle Kennedy, a spokesperson for Polk County Public Schools. “We appreciate the efforts of the City of Lake Wales and Duke Energy to make these changes to help protect students.”

Lake Wales paid Duke Energy $11,000 to install the lights, spokesperson Eric Marshall said. Responding to the city’s request, Duke Energy is also upgrading existing streetlights with brighter, energy-efficient LED lights, according to a news release.

“Duke Energy Florida is proud to support the City of Lake Wales’ efforts to enhance street lighting at bus stops and throughout the community they serve,” Nancy Dodd, Duke Energy Florida government and community relations manager, said in the release. “The company expedited the city’s request and ensured the new lights were installed for the school year.”

Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on X @garywhite13.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Lake Wales has lights added to school bus stops after student's death