From Wikinews, the free news source you can write!
|
This article requires pre-publication review by an uninvolved reviewer (one not substantially involved in writing the article). –Article last amended: Jul 18 at 17:42:41 UTC (history) |
| This article requires pre-publication review by an uninvolved reviewer (one not substantially involved in writing the article).
–Article last amended: Jul 18 at 17:42:41 UTC (history) |
Image: Roger Cornfoot.
Friday, July 18, 2025
Minehead — A coach carrying schoolchildren crashed in Exmoor on Thursday, causing 21 overall injuries. A ten-year-old boy was pronounced dead at the scene. The coach “turned onto its roof” and fell 20ft down an embankment.
Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service said that 60 personnel were deployed to the scene among eight fire engines and two specialised response vehicles.
The coach was carrying as much as 70 people returning to Minehead Middle School from a trip to Exmoor Zoo. The school, alongside five others in its trust, was closed on Friday as a result. 21 were initially transported to hospitals, with six children and three adults remaining hospitalised. It crashed on the A396, at Cutcombe Hill.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that “All my thoughts are with their parents, family and friends, and all those affected” on a Twitter post thanking emergency services. Secretary of State for Education Bridget Phillipson said on a separate post that “I am shocked and saddened to hear of an incident involving a coach carrying school children in Minehead”. Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander is also aware.
Recovery efforts are ongoing, and there has been continued emergency service activity in the area.
