On Sunday, a Saudi student saved her classmate's life after noticing her absence during the school's morning line-up, Okaz newspaper reported.
She immediately informed a teacher that her friend hadn't made it to the school campus in Ahad Tharban, though the two had boarded the bus together that morning. School administrators and teachers then began looking for the missing girl and tracked down the bus driver who found her sleeping in the back seat.
In a statement on the incident, school officials confirmed the girl is in good health condition and that she had returned to school. They also explained that her parents were called and notified of the situation.
Hundreds of Saudis on Twitter are hailing the girl for saving her classmate's life. Many said that if the student hadn't been reported missing, she would've suffocated on the school bus without anyone noticing.
Others tweeted out their concerns about children being forgotten on school buses, especially since this wouldn't be the first time a similar incident is reported in the kingdom.
"Thank God"
"The definition of a good friend"
People want to stop such incidents from recurring
"Bus drivers must be ordered to check seats before moving and after arriving at schools; they should be the ones responsible over that. This isn't the first time a similar incident takes place."
"There must be a supervisor on every school bus"
The kingdom has unfortunately seen such tragic incidents happen in the past
This isn't the first time a student is forgotten on a school bus. However, previously reported cases of students being left behind unfortunately ended in tragedy.
In March, a 4-year-old girl was found dead after she was forgotten on a school bus in Al Qunfudhah governorate.
Last year, 8-year-old Abdulaziz Al-Muslim tragically passed away in similar circumstances. "This is the second time the driver forgets my kid in the bus. Last time it was winter, and so the weather was more bearable," Al-Muslim's mother said at the time.
In 2017, a 4-year-old child died after being left on a school bus for hours.
The child was on board a bus transporting other kids to an after-school Qur'an class in Sabya city' Al Dabya when he fell asleep and didn't exit the vehicle when all other students did.
After being locked on the bus for hours, the student was found unconscious by a driver, who immediately notified authorities of the incident.