Police declared the collision a major incident. (File pic) Photo: 123RF
British police said on Thursday (UK time) one child has died after a crash involving a bus carrying school children in Somerset, southwest England.
Avon and Somerset Police say 21 others, including two children, have been taken to hospital with serious injuries.
Avon and Somerset police said the bus was carrying 60-70 people and was heading to Minehead Middle School at the time of the crash, and that the "large majority" of passengers had been taken to a nearby rest centre.
Police declared the collision a major incident, meaning an event with serious consequences that requires special arrangements from emergency services.
Twenty ambulances and three helicopters responded to the crash, which happened around 3pm, (local time).
Fire crews had earlier rescued people trapped in the bus in what was a "complex and technically difficult incident", Chief Fire Officer for the Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service Gavin Ellis, said.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the incident was "heartbreaking."
"There are no adequate words to acknowledge the death of a child. All my thoughts are with their parents, family and friends, and all those affected," he wrote on X.
The BBC has spoken to a resident who lives near the scene of the crash. The person said the bus had gone down a steep slope and the crash scene was "horrendous".
-Reuters /RNZ
