[ad_1]
Metal colliding and the whine of a horn were the first sounds of calamity in a small rural community, indicating a collision between a bus and a train that has left a bus driver dead and several passengers injured.
Kevin McCord heard the noise several hundred yards away, at his home in Bunnythorpe, about 12 miles from Palmerston North.
“There was an extended touch. I thought it was loud. Then there was a big bang and I thought, ‘That’s metal against metal.
He and several neighbors rushed to the crossing to help the 40 passengers and the driver, who had been thrown from the bus. McCord stayed by his side until he died.
READ MORE:
* Bus and train collide near Palmerston North
* Palmerston North bus riders are happy with the required face masks
* Calls are heard to reduce speed at a fatal intersection
WARWICK SMITH / THINGS
A bus collided with a train near Palmerston North. The bus driver has died, while 40 passengers on board have escaped.
He said the experience was tragic, but the community came together to respond as best they could.
Neighbors brought blankets to passengers, including students from the school, who waited by the roadside to be assessed by St John staff.
“It’s a terrible crossover,” McCord said. “That road is horrible.”
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 was headed for Feilding High School and tried to cross the train tracks before the train completely cleared the road.
He collided with the back of the train despite the lights and bells at the railroad crossing.
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.
Seven people were taken to Palmerston North Hospital with “minor cuts and abrasions.” Since then, five have been discharged.
Two patients remained in wards for observation, both in stable condition, a hospital spokesman said.
Police are asking witnesses to come forward, while officers work 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 Rd, near Bunnythorpe.
He said that five students were taken to the hospital. 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 [her] 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 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 luckily most of the passengers were able to get out of the bus on their own and safely.
“We know that they are predominantly high school students and the most important thing we experience is that parents rush to the scene 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.
Fire and Emergency spokesman Carlos Dempsey said one person had been temporarily trapped on the bus.
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.
Lyn Horgan, acute and elective special services operations executive for the MidCentral District Health Board, said that as soon as they were alerted to the accident, their teams made sure there was space in the hospital emergency department and in theaters. for any incoming patient.
They also provided a space for concerned loved ones to gather, he said.
“We understand that events like this can be extremely distressing for whānau and friends, so we also offered pastoral support for those who wanted it.”
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 bypassed Wednesday 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 result can be when a heavy vehicle collides with a train. We hope that an incident like this never happens again. “
