EL MIRAGE, AZ (AZFamily)<\/b> \u2014 June, a Valley teen, is in the hospital with severe burns after collapsing during her walk home from school and her family is blaming the changed bus routes.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was no one to pick her up from school, so she had to walk home,\u201d said Brittany Smith, June\u2019s aunt. <\/p>\n
She said the Dysart Unified School District bus route change has proven to be dangerous. \u201cSome good Samaritans found her in the roadway. We are very lucky she did not get hit by a car,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n
Smith\u2019s 17-year-old niece was walking home from school on Aug. 1 in 112-degree heat. Due to the bus route changes, she walks about 2 miles each way. June stopped at a sandwich shop to take a break and get more water before suffering heat stroke and collapsing in the street. <\/p>\n
\u201cShe has second and third-degree burns to 16% of her body. She has burns on both sides of her body,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n
Smith explained that when two people noticed June in the road, they called 911. The good Samaritans poured water on her, trying to cool her off, until paramedics arrived. Her core body temperature was about 107 degrees. Anything above 104 can cause a coma, brain damage, cardiac arrest or death. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t know how long she was down on the asphalt before anyone saw her and called 911. And the fact that they stopped and even tried to help. They saved her life,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n
The teen was transported to a nearby burn center, where she\u2019s been for nearly a month. Smith said June has had numerous surgeries, including skin grafting and has experienced a lot of pain during the healing process. The emotional toll has also been difficult.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re really wanting to see a change across Arizona with this heat,\u201c Smith said. <\/p>\n
Now, the high schooler\u2019s family wants to make sure this doesn\u2019t happen to another child. <\/p>\n
\u201cIf we really don\u2019t have the money for transportation, then maybe we need to think of just not starting in the middle of freaking summer,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n
The district said the shortened bus route changes are due to budget constraints and an aging bus fleet.<\/p>\n
June\u2019s family is raising money for health costs. To donate, visit their GoFundMe page<\/a>.<\/p>\n See a spelling or grammatical error in our story? Please click here to report it<\/a>.<\/p>\n