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Pupils traumatised after girl hit by bus
Ambulance crews at the scene of the crash on Tuesday as passengers inside the number two bus look on. Photo: David Lowndes/Peterborough ET
CLASSMATES of a girl critically injured in a collision with a bus in Peterborough on Tuesday are being given support by teachers following the traumatising incident.
The Thomas Deacon Academy pupil, named locally as 12-year-old Courtney Lee, suffered serious head injuries in the crash, which happened on Park Road near the school at 4.30pm as youngsters were heading home.
Following the collision a police spokesman said the girl had suffered a “life changing” injury.
She is now described as being in a serious but stable condition at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge.
Dr Alan McMurdo, principal at Thomas Deacon Academy, said the atmosphere at the school had been sombre following the incident.
He said: “There has been a subdued atmosphere at the academy and we are all waiting for news about Courtney from Cambridge.
“We know she is in a serious condition, but everyone is hoping she will pull through.
“We are sensitive to the needs of her friends and children who were in her class and who knew her, and we will be keeping a very careful eye on them, and offering support where needed.”
Dr McMurdo also praised the action of staff who were on the scene at the time of the accident.
He said: “There were three members of staff there and I understand one gave first aid, while the others kept children who were there and on their way home calm.
“The police have been in to speak to pupils, which is a routine in cases of this sort. There were lots of people who were on their way home with Courtney at the time.”
The incident involved a number two Stagecoach bus and Andy Campbell, managing director at Stagecoach East, said the firm was co-operating with police in their investigation.
He said: “The driver was badly shaken following the incident, but was not physically injured.
“We are speaking with police to help them with their enquiries.
“The bus has been taken off the road and will be tested by VOSA (Vehicle and Operator Services Agency), as is the normal procedure in cases like this.
“We are all waiting and hoping to get information through that the girl involved has recovered, and our sympathies go out to her friends and family.”
Following the accident the youngster, who was unconscious, was treated at the scene by paramedics for 30 minutes.
Witnesses on the bus described hearing a “sickening thud” and the road was cordoned off while emergency services worked at the scene.
Staff in a land ambulance and the air ambulance worked to stabilise the girl, and to anaesthetise her before taking her by land ambulance with a police escort to Addenbrooke’s, a hospital which specialises in head injuries.
Her family have been by her bedside at the hospital since the incident.
A spokesman for Cambridgeshire police said: “We are working with the school and are speaking to any potential witnesses to establish exactly what happened.”
The police investigation into the incident is still ongoing and PC Theron Pearman appealed for witnesses of the incident to contact investigators.
Anyone with any information should call PC Pearman on 101.
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Weather for Peterborough
Saturday 26 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 20 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 10 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: East
