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A bus driver died and 40 people escaped the vehicle, some moderately injured, after it collided with a train at an intersection between Bunnythorpe and Palmerston North.
The accident occurred at the intersection of Railway Rd and Clevely Line, about 2 kilometers from Bunnythorpe, shortly after 8 a.m. Wednesday.
Police Sergeant Major Phil Ward said the bus driver, a woman, died at the scene of the accident. The bus was heading to Feilding High School and tried to cross the train tracks before the train completely cleared the road.
The bus collided with the rear of the train despite the lights and bells at the railroad crossing.
WARWICK SMITH / THINGS
A bus collided with a train near Palmerston North. The bus driver has died, while 40 passengers on board have escaped.
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David Unwin / Stuff
A bus collided with a train on Railway Rd and Clevely Line, between Bunnythorpe and Palmerston North.
Ward said the sun strike could have been a factor.
A rating system was established for schoolchildren and civilians on board, and high school teachers and counselors attended to help.
He said the situation was traumatic and terrifying for the children, but they were all calm, level-headed and taking care of each other.
Ward said six people taken to the hospital had “minor cuts and abrasions.” It is understood that all have been released.
Police were asking witnesses to come forward, while officers worked to determine what happened.
Feilding High School principal Nathan Stewart said there were about 25 students from the school on the bus.
“It was a public bus that traveled from Palmerston North to Feilding. They will be fine. “
Warwick Smith / Stuff
Emergency services are at the scene of an accident between a bus and a train on Railway Road near Bunnythorpe.
He said that five students had gone to the hospital and he believed that hospital staff were checking that they were okay.
The other 20 students had been picked up by their parents and gone home to spend time with their families.
“It is very unfortunate for the bus driver and our thoughts are with [their] family, but we think everyone else is safe and will be fine. “
He said that the support for the students at the hospital had been fantastic.
St John Manawatū Territory Manager Jeff Mabbett said the six injured people were taken to the Palmerston North Hospital emergency department.
“Buses in front of any vehicle often cause catastrophic injuries, so it’s nice to have only six patients transported to the hospital.”
David Unwin / Stuff
Forty children have been removed from the school bus, some with moderate injuries.
He said there was extreme damage to the front of the bus, but fortunately most of the children were able to get out of the bus by themselves and safely.
“We know that they are predominantly high school students and the most important thing we experience is that parents rush to the place to check if they are their children.”
Children were wrapped in blankets after being pulled out of a window and many were picked up by parents.
Maxine Jacobs / Stuff
Emergency services are at the scene where a bus and train collided at the intersection of Railway Rd and Clevely Line in Bunnythorpe.
One person had been trapped on the bus, Fire and Emergency spokesman Carlos Dempsey said.
KiwiRail Group CEO Greg Miller said he was shocked and saddened to learn of the accident.
“We are supporting our train conductor, who is shaken but physically unharmed.”
He said the conductor was the only person on board the train, which was traveling from Palmerston North to Whanganui to collect log wagons.
The train suffered minor damage and the conductor said he had honked his horn before the collision.
“In the last 15 years there have been no collisions at this crossing between trains and vehicles or pedestrians, although our records show a near miss when a car crossed in front of a train in January 2011.”
Miller said there were no plans to install boom barriers. The speed of the trains that travel through this area is 80 km / h.
Warwick Smith / Stuff
Feilding High School students were aboard the bus.
On behalf of the Horizons Regional Council, Horizons Regional Council Transportation Manager Rhona Hewitt expressed her condolences to the bus driver’s family and colleagues.
“We’re also thinking about the passengers who were on the service that runs between Palmerston North and Feilding, which, given the time of day, included school children.”
He said bus services traveling this route remained diverted and Horizons was working closely with all the agencies involved.
Warwick Smith / Stuff
No one from Uzabus was available to comment on the accident.
Stuff he contacted the Uzabus bus company and was told that no one was available to comment on the accident.
Turnouts for motorists were established on Railway Rd and Dixon Line. The road reopened later in the morning.
The TrackSafe NZ Rail Safety Charitable Foundation, director of the Megan Drayton Foundation, was saddened to learn of the accident.
“This incident serves as an absolutely tragic reminder of how serious the outcome can be when a heavy vehicle collides with a train. We hope that an incident like this never happens again.”
