One middle school student died and 21 others were injured after a school bus crashed and flipped onto its roof. This horrific accident happened on Thursday, July 17, in England, according to PEOPLE.
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School Bus Crashes And Flips, Killing One Student And Injuring Dozens More
Just before 3 PM local time, emergency services responded to a collision report on the A396 at Cutcombe Hill, Exmoor. They found a school bus that was driving back to Minehead Middle School in Somerset “overturned onto its roof,” per the BBC. The bus allegedly slid around six meters down an embankment near Wheddon Cross.
Both firetrucks and over 20 ambulances arrived at the scene, firefighters helping free the dozens of trapped passengers. “Approximately 60 to 70 people were believed to be onboard at the time,” said an Avon and Somerset Police press release.
The school bus not only contained young students, but adults as well. This incident ended in the death of a young boy. “We can confirm tonight that one child has sadly died,” it said.
The BBC identified the victim as a 10-year-old boy. One of the pupil’s head teachers, Laura Mackie, said she felt “complete devastation” at the news of his death. She also mentioned this loss being “unimaginable” and said she would be “thinking of the student that we lost, their family, their friends, all of their loved ones.”
Mackie then spoke about the “amazing” staff and students affected. “[I’m] thinking of my staff team who are amazing, dedicated, and all of our wonderful students that have been affected and impacted by this awful, awful incident. It’s just been horrific,” Mackie added.
Meanwhile, six other injured children and three adults are still in the hospital. Some of the victims in the hospital arrived with “serious injuries,” while many other passengers sustained minor injuries.
The outlet spoke with a local mother of two children, Lianna O’Connor, who was heartbroken by the news. “I think as a community it’s just as one mum cries, every other mum cries,” said O’Connor.
We also now know where the bus was heading that afternoon. A coach was returning to the middle school with the students after taking a trip to Exmoor Zoo.
The authorities confirmed they would investigate the cause of this horrific incident. This tragedy could end up with the driver responsible, but we don’t know the details yet.