Students returned last week to a Massachusetts elementary school that was the scene of a car accident that severely injured several people.
Shortly after the 390-student Central Elementary School in Stoneham, Mass., dismissed pupils on Oct. 1, a 65-year-old man who was picking up his grandson, a 4th grader at the school, lost control of his car. It jumped the curb and ran into a crowd of waiting children and parents.
Some were pinned between the car and a stone retaining wall separating the pickup area from the playground.
The school, located 12 miles north of Boston, offered a weekend of counseling for parents, students, and teachers.
A total of 11 people were injured; five remained hospitalized last week in serious, or guarded, condition, according to Joseph J. Connelly, the superintendent of the 2,900-student Stoneham public school district.
Among those still hospitalized were a mother and four children, including a 5-year-old kindergartner who lost one of his legs, and his sister, one of two preschoolers who were accompanying parents to pick up siblings when the accident occurred.
Mr. Connelly said that to his knowledge, no charges have been filed against the driver. The Stoneham police department declined to comment on the investigation.
