NY teen's death

on party bus a

warning to others

Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) - It's a familiar scene on city streets

and in movies: dressed-up teenagers packed into a stretch limo,

celebrating something important by jubilantly sticking their heads through

the roof.

A bigger version of that is the rented party bus, which can pack in more

guests. Renting such buses - some two stories high, offering such

amenities as strobe lights and satellite TV - "is what kids call fun

nowadays," said Emily DaRocha of the Silver Star Limousine company.

"We're talking about kids in the 21st century; that's how it is.“

But such trips also carry more risk, as in the case this weekend of a New

York teenager who poked his head through a hatch that had been opened

on a double-decker bus loaded with dozens of dancing teens on their way

to a party. Daniel Fernandez, 16, was fatally struck when the bus went

under an overpass, according to authorities.

“No matter how many times you tell clients this is an emergency exit - it's

written on the glass - they still open it," DaRocha said. "It happens all the

time."

Her company in suburban Westchester County only offers single-level

buses, Mercedes-Benzes that rent for up to $500 an hour.

Safety precautions must be part of the package, though, too. For a group

of 40 guests, Silver Star requires two adults be aboard if the group is

made up of teens or children 18 or under.

"It's much more dangerous when you have a double-decker with 65 kids -

because they're hard to control," DaRocha said.

In addition to the driver, a security guard was on board the bus

Fernandez was riding on Friday that was taking the teens from New York

City to a sweet 16 bash in New Jersey. Design Limousines of New York,

which operated the double-decker bus, did not return calls seeking

comment on whether other chaperones were on board.

The security guard told reporters he watched for all but a few minutes,

when he'd gone downstairs. And that's when the hatch was opened, after

the bus crossed the George Washington Bridge into New Jersey.

Other private transportation companies have altogether given up trying

to safely entertain a bus full of teens.

A short drive from The Venetian, the event center that was the bus'

destination in New Jersey on Friday night, is the Garden State Limousine

company. The company offers sweet 16 party packages, "but no more

party buses, not for years," manager Joseph Ramsey said. "It's not easy to

deal with kids."

Even in limos, especially during prom season, "they open the sunroof

after you tell them not to do this," he says. "They don't listen."

• Parents have the right to give feedback on any changes in scheduling of

extracurricular activities.

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principal.

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the responsibility for final evaluation rests with the principal.

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