Boy run over by bus in west Auckland

File photo / Martin Sykes

An eight-year-old boy was crossing the road in Swanson, west Auckland this afternoon when he was hit by an oncoming bus.

The accident happened at the local shops just after school had finished. Many people witnessed the boy hitting the windscreen and being dragged under the bus.

"He was unconscious initially then came to and was in agony, screaming," said Deanna Uttler, a teacher at the nearby Swanson School.

Ms Uttler said it appeared the boy had dropped something on the road and ran back to get it.

She said speeding was a problem in the area and the school Board of Trustees had been lobbying for it to become a 40km/h zone.

The boy, who Swanson School principal Bruce McLachlan confirmed was a pupil there, was taken to Middlemore Hospital with what is thought to be non-life-threatening injuries.

The serious crash unit is investigating.