Tragic School Bus Crash in China Claims 11 Lives

A school bus crashed into a throng outside a middle school in eastern China on Tuesday, killing 11 parents and pupils, according to official media.

CCTV said that the driver “lost control” of the vehicle as it neared the school in Shandong province’s Tai’an city around 7:27 a.m. (2327 GMT Monday).

The bus collided with a group of parents and children on the side of the road, according to CCTV.

“As of now, (the incident) has killed 11 people, of whom six were parents and five were students,” the broadcaster said in an update shortly after 11:30 a.m.

It stated that one other person was in “critical” condition, while the vital signs of another 12 persons were “stable”.

Social media posts showed people in blood-soaked garments laying in the road near a huge grey bus.

Several individuals crouched over youngsters who lay still on the ground, as others screamed in the background.

“They’re all dead, it’s so heartbreaking,” a woman’s voice could be heard saying off-camera in one video of the crash’s aftermath.

“I’d have been killed too if I’d stood there, but luckily I ran away fast,” she told me.
AFP was able to geolocate various social media photographs and videos to the school in Shandong where the crash occurred.

The driver was being held by local authorities, and the incident’s reason was “under investigation,” according to CCTV.

Many public schools in China resumed for the new school year this week.

Deadly road accidents occur frequently in the country as a result of inadequate safety standards and widespread reckless driving.
In July, authorities reported that a vehicle collided with pedestrians in Changsha, killing eight and wounding five.

A 55-year-old suspect from the neighborhood was detained pending an inquiry, however it was unclear whether the event was deliberate or not.

AFP