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Parents step in to help at school crosswalk

Posted at 7:21 PM, Mar 08, 2016
and last updated 2016-03-08 19:21:37-05

Parents say it's become a common sight on the corner of Port St. Lucie Blvd and Gig Place.

Cars zooming down the road at high speeds just a few hundred feet from NAU Imagine Charter School.

The school tells us it's been 6 months since St. Lucie schools cut the crossing guard budget throughout the county.

It means they went from having 4 guards to now just one, which the school has to pay for out of it's budget.

"During school time, it is 20 miles an hour," says parent Roger Templeman. "Very few obey that. Even fewer know the law that you should stop when someone is engaged in the cross walk."

Some parents fearing that this crossing could soon be the scene of a tragedy.

Its why parents are stepping up and taking matters into their own hands.

Some are even putting themselves in harms way to protect kids.

"I don't want them to get hurt, so I will stand in front of all the cars to make sure they don't get hurt," one parent told us.

The school says it's hoping to bring on parent volunteers to help.

Those volunteers will then train with the police department to become crossing guards.

Templeman, active in the volunteer push, wants even more done out here.

"Some additional signage to let people know about the school zone, maybe extending it," Templeman says.

He says nothing is better than the power of parents, coming together for a common cause - their children.

"We want citizens to stand up and say 'You know what? This isn't right. This is ridiculous, let's just stand up and do this!" he says. "All it takes is one tiny spark to start the fire."

Port Saint Lucie Police say they are aware of the issue.

Police say they are working on getting better signage and brighter street paint.