Bus Driver Fatally Hits 11-Year-Old at Bath Beach Crosswalk
Police charged school bus driver Wawa Aurelus after the official record says an 11-year-old girl crossing with the signal was killed at 23rd and Bath avenues; news reports identified her as Amira Aminova.
What We Know
Police said bus driver Wawa Aurelus, 62, was turning a school bus at 23rd Avenue and Bath Avenue on Feb. 5, 2026, when he hit 11-year-old Amira Aminova as she crossed Bath Avenue in a marked crosswalk. The official crash record says the girl was crossing with the signal and lists failure to yield right-of-way as a contributing factor. Reporters cited police saying Aurelus did not remain at the scene; accounts differed on whether officers found him minutes later or hours later. Police charged him with failure to yield to a pedestrian and failure to exercise due care, while CBS reported that police said he was not charged with leaving the scene because he said he was not aware of the crash. Amira was taken to Maimonides Medical Center, where she died.
An 11-year-old was crossing with the signal
The crash happened at about 3:05 p.m. on Feb. 5, 2026, at 23rd Avenue and Bath Avenue in Brooklyn. The official record says an 11-year-old female pedestrian was killed while crossing with the signal at the intersection.
Police and news reports identified the child as Amira Aminova. Several outlets reported that she was in a marked crosswalk and had the right of way when the driver turned through her path. EMS took her to Maimonides Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead.
Accounts describe a right turn through the crosswalk
Police accounts quoted by Brooklyn Paper, News 12 and the Daily News said Wawa Aurelus drove south on 23rd Avenue and turned right onto westbound Bath Avenue before hitting Amira in the crosswalk. The official vehicle entry records a right-turn movement and lists failure to yield right-of-way as a contributing factor.
The direction details are not identical across records: the official vehicle entry lists westbound travel, while multiple press accounts citing police describe a southbound approach on 23rd Avenue before the right turn. The shared account is that the driver was making a right turn when the collision occurred.
The driver left, and police filed traffic charges
Reporters consistently cited police saying Aurelus did not remain at the scene. ABC7 reported that police located him hours later several miles away, while the Daily News reported that officers stopped him minutes later a short distance away.
Police charged Aurelus with failure to yield to a pedestrian and failure to exercise due care. CBS reported that police said he had a valid license and no prior arrests, and that he was not charged with leaving the scene because he told police he was not aware of the crash.
Neighbors remembered a child from the block
CBS reported that Amira was struck just steps from home. Neighbors brought a teddy bear, candles and her favorite candy to the intersection, and a neighbor described her as a smiling, happy child.
Workers at a corner deli told reporters that Amira had just bought chocolate and a soda before the crash, and one worker said she came in every day.
Bath Avenue has a recent record of serious crashes
The collision happened at 23rd Avenue and Bath Avenue in Bath Beach, near homes, shops and school-dismissal foot traffic described by local reports.
CrashCountNYC location context for Bath Avenue in Brooklyn recorded 260 crashes, 140 injuries, 6 serious injuries and 2 deaths from 2022 through June 1, 2026.