A 12-year-old Florida girl is reportedly in critical condition after being accidentally run over by her mother on her first day of school.

On Monday, August 12, at around 7:45 a.m. local time, the mother headed to Booker Middle School in Sarasota to drop off her daughter, the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) confirmed, according to WFTS-TV.

The student dropped her backpack and tried to pick up school supplies that had rolled under her mother’s SUV, the newspaper added. Tragically, however, the little girl’s mother did not notice what her daughter was doing and drove off, hitting her, the publication added.

“She stopped immediately when she heard her child screaming,” FHP Trooper Kenn Watson told WFTS-TV.

Watson did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

According to WWSB, the student was flown to the hospital by helicopter with life-threatening injuries. FOX 13 Tampa Bay reported the incident occurred in the right-turn lane of Myrtle Street west of Newtown Boulevard.

WFTS-TV added that the 12-year-old was taken to Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg.

Watson said, according to the outlet and Fox 13, “Here we are, day one, and we’ve already experienced tragedy.”

“We hope this does not happen again, but we must remember to have good spatial awareness when we are near a school zone and especially when we let our child out of the car.”

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“We want to avoid being in a rush and dropping our kids off in the turning lane when we should be right in front of the school,” Watson continued, according to the release.

“This is a tragedy that could have been avoided 100 percent if we had just been a little more careful and taken our time.”

Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital, Sarasota police and Booker Middle School Principal Dr. LaShawn Frost did not immediately respond when PEOPLE reached out for comment.

According to WFTS-TV, school principal Frost sent a message to parents confirming the accident.

“This is a reminder of the importance of following our established safety procedures,” Frost said, according to the outlet.

“Please remember that students should not be dropped off in the middle of Myrtle Street. This practice poses a significant risk to the safety of our students and other road users. We ask that all parents and guardians follow the designated drop-off procedures and use the parent loop. This will ensure that students enter the school safely and we can maintain a safe environment for everyone,” the principal added.