Northern Alberta bus monitor removed for writing letter 'expressing his feelings' to minor

A bus monitor working in northern Alberta has been removed from his job after he "wrote a note expressing his feelings to a young girl."

The Northland School Division confirmed in a letter that a casual employee working as a monitor on school buses penned the letter to a student attending Anzac School, a Kindergarten to Grade 4 school located south of Fort McMurray.

Within hours of the incident, the bus monitor was removed from his duties and he is no longer employed with the school division.

"With safety being a top priority for Anzac School and Bill Woodward School, we took immediate action upon being aware of the incident," the school's vice-principal Amy Savill said in a letter to parents on Friday.

Northland superintendent of schools Gord Atkinson would not release the name of the bus monitor or specify if he was fired, citing it was an internal human resources matter. Atkinson said he was stunned by the news of the bus monitor's actions.

"There was an incredible shock," Atkinson said. "It's unbelievable that this sort of thing would occur."

Atkinson said the matter was referred to the RCMP.

Wellness workers and counsellors have been brought in to help the victim, family members and students at the school.

Connect with David Thurton, CBC's Fort McMurray correspondent, on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn or email him at david.thurton@cbc.ca