CHESTERFIELD, Va. (WWBT/Gray News) – A woman saved a toddler who was wandering in a busy intersection on Friday.
Latoya Parham says she had just dropped off her kids at school.
While driving back from dropping her son off, Parham stopped at an intersection when she noticed a little boy run into the road.
“I realized no one is with him,” she said.
The Chesterfield County Police Department says the child wandered to the intersection from Fortress of God Childcare.
Officers say a bus driver saw the boy and stopped their bus. A few people, including Parham, also left their cars to get the child out of the road and to safety.
“When I first saw the toddler running in the street, all I could think as a single mom was, ‘Oh my god. This is probably someone’s worst fear coming to life right now,‘” she said. “I just put on the brakes in my car and jumped out immediately, ran to him, grabbed him and just held him like he’s my child because I couldn’t imagine someone finding my child in the middle of the road in a busy intersection.”
Police say the child was not injured and was wearing clothes, but not a winter coat.
Officers went to Fortress of God Childcare, but there are still questions about how the child was able to walk away from the day care.
“I sympathize with the parents because I can’t imagine dropping my child off at daycare and then getting a call from a police department saying they have my child,” Parham said. “That is something I don’t hope anyone would have to go through ever.”
Parham says she is thankful she was in the right place at the right time.
“It only takes a minute for something bad to happen, and I definitely feel as though I was in that right place for a reason, and I’m grateful,” she said.
Chesterfield Police say they contacted the Fire Marshal’s Office and the Office of Childcare Health and Safety to help with their investigation.
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