By Anthony J. Machcinski/The Jersey Journal 

 Two bus company employees have been arrested after police say they left an 8-year-old disabled North Bergen boy on a school bus for five hours, police said.

Aida Lazala, 62, of North Bergen and Arturo Martinez, 71, of Jersey City, were arrested on March 11, the same day the boy was left in a parked school bus on Amity Street in Jersey City, where the bus company, Hudson County Transportation, is located, police said.

The boy, 8, has Russell-Silver Syndrome, a genetic disorder, it was revealed in  court when Martinez and Lazala appeared Wednesday. Russell-Silver Syndrome is characterized by slow growth before and after birth, and includes low birth weight and failure to thrive, according to National Library of Medicine.

Police said that the boy fell asleep on the bus on the way to Kennedy School in the morning. The bus was then driven to the Jersey City lot and both Martinez and Lazala left the bus in the lot without checking it for students, police said.

Police said the boy was alone on the bus for about five hours. Only when Martinez and Lazala returned for their afternoon shift was the child found on the empty bus, reports said.

The boy's parents were notified when the boy was reported absent, according to district procedure, school officials said. Martinez and Lazala notified officials at the grammar school when they returned for their afternoon pickup.

Both Martinez, the bus driver, and Lazala, the aide, were charged with endangering the welfare of a child and endangering the welfare of a disabled person, a criminal complaint said.

Alan Manzo, the president of the bus company, said that Martinez and Lazala have been fired. He also noted that they had no prior similar incidents.

"The bus is supposed to be checked thoroughly and obviously they didn't do their job," Manzo said. "We haven't had incidents with them before, but (leaving a child on the bus) is a no-no."

North Bergen Superintendent of Schools Robert Dandorph was happy that the boy was OK, but blasted the bus employees.

 "We are deeply grateful that this child was not harmed and we are shocked by the inexcusable neglect and incompetence of the bus company's employees," Dandorph said in a statement. "It is shocking that adults we trust to protect our children could show such callous disregard for their welfare."

 Lazala and Martinez appeared in Central Judicial Processing court yesterday, speaking through an interpreter, and both post $2,500 bail.