Parents were left furious after police asked the driver of the 70-seat coach to block the path of a car that had failed to stop in Battlebarrow, Cumbria, during the Appleby Horse Fair last Friday.
Passengers said the youngsters from Appleby Primary School were ‘crying and saying they didn’t want to die’ and teenage pupils described the incident as ‘terrifying’.
Collision: Parents were left furious after
police asked the driver of the 70-seat coach to block the path of a car
that had failed to stop in Battlebarrow, Cumbria, during the Appleby
Horse Fair
Mother-of-two Amanda Daldry, 43, said: ‘The police should have anticipated that the car might not stop and should not have used a school bus as a barricade when there were children on board.’
Mrs Daldry, of Sandforth, whose two daughters were on the bus, said: ‘The police are trained to think of every eventuality - yet they don’t seem to have thought that the car might ram the bus.
‘They should have anticipated that it might not stop. The coach driver did a great thing. I understand that if he did not do what he did more people might have been hurt.
‘But if the police had the time to go to the coach driver and ask for help, they had time to radio for a police car. They should not have used a school bus. What if some of the kids were seriously hurt?’
However a Cumbria Police spokesman insisted that the car was heading for a road beyond the bus which was thronged with spectators, horses and other schoolchildren.
Scary: Mother Amanda Daldry, 43, of Sandford,
Cumbria, is pictured with her two daughters Holly (right) and Jessica
(left). Holly said the younger children on the bus 'started crying and
thinking they were all going to die'
'The
police should have anticipated that the car might not stop and should
not have used a school bus as a barricade when there were children on
board'
The move was also backed by Robin
Hooper, chief executive of Eden District Council and chairman of the
Multi-Agency Strategic Coordination Group, which was policing the fair.
Amanda Daldry, mother of pupils
He said: ‘A bus driver was asked to manoeuvre to protect the public and children.’
But Mrs Daldry’s daughter Holly, 15, told how police spoke to the bus driver who then backed the vehicle across the width of the street - while passengers were not told what was happening.
She said: ‘At first I thought he was reversing to turn around but we were waiting for a few minutes. Then there was this big thump. We didn’t see the car coming because we were on the other side.
‘The little kids started crying and thinking they were all going to die.’
Crash: David White, 47, pictured with his son Sam, 14, who was also on the bus at the time of the crash
Big event: The Appleby Horse Fair took place last week in the small Cumbrian market town of Appleby
Cumbria Police have since met head teachers Rachel Pearson, of Appleby Primary School, and Andy Lund, of Appleby Grammar. Crime Commissioner Richard Rhodes has pledged to investigate.
'I don't want to die, I'm too young to die'
The primary school and Grand Prix
Coaches both declined to comment. But Mr Lund said: ‘It is not within
the scope of the school to influence (whether it was the correct
decision). They have to decide what they do.'
What Sam White, 14, heard younger boys and girls saying
Mr Rhodes said: ‘I met with the parents of children involved in the incident on Friday evening and listened to their concerns.
‘As a result my office will be conducting a review of the constabulary’s procedures and whether they worked within policy. I will report back in due course.’
Steven Quinn, 31, of Newcastle-upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, has been charged with dangerous driving, no insurance, driving otherwise in accordance with a licence and handling stolen goods.
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