Latest news with #CutcombeHill
The Independent
2 days ago
- General
- The Independent
Minehead school to reopen for first time since fatal bus crash
A Minehead school will reopen on Monday for the first time since a bus crash which left one pupil dead and others injured. Minehead Middle School in Somerset closed on Friday after a school bus with 60 to 70 of its pupils and staff crashed on Thursday afternoon while returning from a trip to Exmoor Zoo. A 10-year-old boy died and six children and three adults remain in hospital after the vehicle left the A396 at Cutcombe Hill near Minehead, overturned and came to rest about 20ft from the road, down a steep slope. The crash happened between Wheddon Cross and Timberscombe, at about 3.15pm. Tens of thousands of pounds have been raised for victims following the incident and members of the community have left tributes at the school. A spokeswoman on behalf of Beacon Education Multi-Academy Trust, which runs the school, said that it would be open on Monday.
The Sun
3 days ago
- General
- The Sun
Hero ex-jockey who ferried injured children to safety on quad bike after horror bus crash ‘couldn't sleep' after tragedy
A HERO ex-jockey who ferried children to safety from the horrific bus crash in Somerset has revealed that he couldn't sleep following the tragedy. Alan Jones, 64, drove passengers to safety on the back of his quad bike after they escaped the crash site. 6 6 6 On Thursday, a bus carrying 60 to 70 pupils from Minehead Middle School fell off a 20ft slope. The vehicle was returning from a trip to Exmoor Zoo, before leaving the A396 at Cutcombe Hill and falling from the height. Alan, an ex-jockey, took eight adults and children to the Rest and Be Thankful Inn in Wheddon Cross - following the horrifying crash. The heroic driver used his quad bike to travel across the nearby fields, after the road was closed. However, the sights he saw left him unable to sleep when he got home. Opening up about the crash, Alan said: "It's the most remote place. "The children coming out of that accident wouldn't have known where they were. "I think it would have been wrong not to try and help. I was there in under 10 minutes. "When I got there, the road was closed and the police were everywhere. Everybody was just looking at the bus. "I didn't know there were any fatalities at the time, but I knew there were children still in the bus, and all of the police officers were just basically around the bus and there wasn't anybody else about, really; I was the only local person there." Alan said that he helped two teachers on the side of the road first. Whilst driving the two women towards the pub, he saw a group of children and one adult who had been instructed to head to the pub. The inn was being used as a safe hub for the bus's passengers. Alan said that the group didn't know where they were, when he reached them. He said: "They were just sort of stranded there. They didn't know what was going on, really. "They wouldn't have known where they were and there were high trees behind and in front of them because the road runs through the cliff a bit. "You could see they were injured and crying and upset. "It was too far, these were very young middle school children. They'd just been upside down in a bus, over a cliff, all the windows had broken in the bus, and they'd scrambled out and been helped out by emergency services. 6 "I presume some of them were told to make their way up but they just couldn't walk up." Two teachers were picked up by an ambulance, while Alan worked to get the others to the inn. He says that the teachers and their pupils were a 'sorry sight', but everyone nearby 'dropped everything' to help. One teacher said to him that they were 'never going back on a bus or coach ever again'. When he got to the top, ambulances picked up the two women so he returned to pick up another teacher and child. Sadly, a 10-year-old boy died in the crash and six children and three adults are still in hospital. A resident in West Somerset has launched a GoFundMe campaign to support those affected. The campaign has already raised more than £15,000 in just a day. Despite having no direct connections to those affected by the crash, Bobbie Raymond said he launched the fund because he had a 'strong desire' to help. He wrote on the fundraising page: "We are all heartbroken by the tragic school bus crash that occurred on the A396 on July 17. 6 6 "Our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with the children, families, staff, and emergency responders affected by this devastating event. "As a father of two young children myself, I can only begin to imagine the pain and heartbreak that so many are experiencing right now. "This tragedy has shaken the local community, and like many others, I felt a strong desire to do what I could to help. "I understand this is a sensitive time, and while the specific use of the fund will be shaped by the needs of those involved my promise is to ensure it reaches the people who need it most." One schoolgirl, Emily Manning, 10, climbed onto the bus as it was preparing to leave but was told to get off at the last minute. She was told that the bus was already full and that she needed to get on the other coach. Emily got on the other bus which returned her home safely, while the other veered off the 20ft slope. She said: "It had been a really nice day at the zoo. I wanted to go on the second coach because that's where my friends were but there were too many people so I got off. "Everybody was in front of me and that meant I couldn't. I was upset because my friends were on that bus but also lucky.' Her dad, Nick Manning, 48, a window cleaner from Minehead, said: "I just feel incredibly grateful that she wasn't on it. I got a phone call when I was still at work asking me if I had picked up Emily yet because something terrible had happened. "It's every parent's nightmare, it's absolutely awful. I had constant messages and phone calls checking Emily was ok. People were panicking." An off-duty firefighter also pulled over upon seeing the crash and climbed down to the coach, before pulling passengers from the wreckage. Gavin Ellis, Chief Fire Officer for Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service, said: "We were mobilised to a major incident to a coach that had overturned onto its roof and slip approximately 20ft (6.1m) down an embankment. "I'm grateful to the off-duty firefighter who was travelling behind the coach at the point of the collision who was able to start taking immediate [action] to start releasing those casualties from the bus."
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
What we know as boy, 10, killed in Somerset school bus crash
A 10-year-old boy has died and several people suffered serious injuries after a coach returning from a school trip flipped onto its roof and slid down a 20ft bank in Somerset. The coach was travelling back from Exmoor Zoo to Minehead Middle School when it left the A396 at Cutcombe Hill. Staff and pupils were among 21 people taken to hospital for treatment, including several who suffered serious injuries. As investigations get underway into how the crash happened, tributes have been paid with prime minister Sir Keir Starmer saying: "There are no adequate words to acknowledge the death of a child. All my thoughts are with their parents, family and friends, and all those affected." What we know The bus, carrying 60 to 70 people, is believed to have been taking Year 5 pupils from Minehead Middle School, which caters for pupils aged between nine and 14, to Exmoor Zoo as part of its 'Enrichment Week' activities. But the bus left the A396 at Cutcombe Hill, between Wheddon Cross and Timberscombe at about 3.15pm on Thursday, sliding 20ft down an embankment. A press conference on Thursday heard that an off-duty firefighter travelling behind the coach was able to start freeing passengers immediately. Gavin Ellis, of Devon and Somerset Fire & Rescue Service, said: 'We were mobilised to a major incident of a coach that had overturned onto its roof and slid approximately 20ft down the embankment. 'This was a very complex and technically difficult incident for our crews to deal with, and I'm grateful for the tireless effort and actions of the crews in doing everything they could for those who were trapped and as quickly as safely as possible.' Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance and Devon Air Ambulance, the HM Coastguard and a police helicopter were all reportedly on the scene, and two children were airlifted to hospital with serious injuries. Six children and three adults remain in hospital. Two children were taken to Bristol Royal Hospital for Children by air ambulance following the incident, while four other children and three adults remain in hospital in Somerset, Avon and Somerset Police said. The road remained shut overnight, Avon and Somerset Police said. Beacon Education Multi-Academy Trust, which includes Minehead Middle School among its network, said: "It is with deep sadness and heartbreak that we confirm that a pupil from Minehead Middle School has tragically died following a road traffic incident earlier today involving a coach carrying pupils and staff returning from an educational visit. "A number of other people have been taken to hospital, some of them with serious injuries. This includes two children who were taken to hospital by air ambulance. "Our entire school community are devastated by this news, and we will do everything we can to support everyone affected. "We are working closely with the emergency services and relevant authorities, and we will support our pupils, staff, and families at this incredibly difficult time." The school was due to be closed on Friday, the BBC reported. A resident who lives near the crash scene described the incident as 'horrendous'. The resident, who asked not to be named, told the PA news agency: 'The coach has gone down the slope. It's pretty steep around here and it's a big coach. There are no barriers along there or anything. We're used to it, you don't even notice it. 'I can't believe it happened, quite honestly, it's the biggest thing I have known to go over the slope. It's horrendous, and I'm just so sorry for all those kids on that coach.' Rachel Gilmour, MP for Tiverton and Minehead, said: 'It's a very difficult road, very, very steep, very windy, and it's just the nature of rural roads in my constituency, you know, Minehead famously, only has one road that takes you into it on the A39 and if you're coming from where I live in Bampton or across the Moor, those are the roads that you have to use.' She said the crash was 'tragic' and she was 'heartbroken for the parents and the school and the wider family'. Ridlers Coaches director Peter Prior-Sankey said in a statement: 'Everyone at Ridlers is truly devastated by yesterday's tragic incident and our thoughts and prayers remain with the pupils, their families, and the school. 'Our thanks go to the incredible emergency service teams for their response, and to those across our local hospitals and community who have done so much for those impacted over the last 24 hours." He said the driver was in a stable condition but had suffered a number of injuries, and said staff at the company are being supported, while he and his team are liaising with Somerset Council. He said a decision had been made not to run any school routes into Minehead today, and that ongoing discussions will be had over the coming days concerning any other affected routes or contracts. Flowers and tributes were laid outside the school on Friday following the crash. Staff from Old Cleeve Pre-School wrote: 'Our thoughts and prayers go out to all those affected by this tragic incident.' Another said: 'Thinking of everyone at this heartbreaking and devastating time. Our community is holding you all tight and surrounding you with love.' Reverend Philip Butcher, vicar of Minehead, said: 'It's an absolute tragedy, and one that's still very much unfolding. We're just standing firm with the school, with the families at this time, just to be with them in this time as a point of support. 'This is a big, big, big tragedy, and it will affect people for a long time to come. I know this community is so strong that it will be here in all its forms to support everybody fully as far as they need.' What we don't know While many details have emerged about the crash, some remain unknown. The child who tragically died in the incident has not yet been named or identified. The severity of injuries sustained by other children has also not been revealed. Some have been described as serious, though their nature or any details have not emerged. The cause of the crash has also not yet been established. Local coach operator Ridlers, which owns the bus, said it had been liaising with the school and the emergency services and confirmed the 70-seater vehicle was travelling back from Exmoor Zoo. Click below to see the latest South West headlines
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Yahoo
Child killed and several injured in Somerset coach crash
A child has died and several people are injured after a coach crash at Cutcombe Hill in Somerset on Thursday afternoon. The coach was returning to Minehead Middle School from Exmoor Zoo when it slid down a six-metre bank off the A396.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Yahoo
Child killed and several injured in Somerset coach crash
A child has died and several people are injured after a coach crash at Cutcombe Hill in Somerset on Thursday afternoon. The coach was returning to Minehead Middle School from Exmoor Zoo when it slid down a six-metre bank off the A396. Solve the daily Crossword
