Police have named the 15-year-old girl who died in a bus crash on the M53 as Jessica Baker. It’s claimed the coach driver Stephen Shrimpton, who also died, suffered a medical problem behind the wheel.
According to a newspaper outlet, Stephen Shrimpton was driving a coach of more than 50 students when it collided with a car and flipped onto its side in a crash in Hooton, Cheshire at 8.30 a.m.
The incident, which also left a 14-year-old boy with life-changing injuries, saw terrified children climbing out of the windows of the stricken vehicle as they fled the wreckage.
Pupils caught up in the confusion sobbed as they told emergency workers how they thought they were going to die, while traumatised eyewitnesses described seeing children on the floor outside the bus.
Merseyside Police closed the motorway as investigations took place, and tributes were paid to the victims of the incident.
At West Kirby Grammar School, where Jessica was a student, fellow students were ushered out of school in silence.
Launching a GoFundMe to pay for his funeral, Mr Shrimpton’s sister-in-law claimed that the father of two had suffered a medical issue while driving.
‘I’m raising some funds for my brother-in-law’s funeral’, the page reads. ‘He tragically died in an accident on the M53 on the morning of the 29th of September, after suffering medical issues at the wheel while driving students to school.
‘He’s sadly left behind my sister who’s now a widow in her early thirties, and unfortunately, a single mum alongside his much loved two young children, only 8 and 4, who are going to grow up without their beloved father’.
It comes after the family of Jessica released a picture of her.
A police statement issued said that Jessica Baker sadly died as a result of the collision on the M53 northbound carriageway, and it continued that Jessica’s family have requested that their privacy be respected at this time and any updates from them would be issued via Merseyside Police news office as appropriate.
It comes hours after Merseyside Police said a 14-year-old boy suffered life-changing injuries as a result of the fatal school bus accident that happened in the Wirral.
The force said 58 people were involved in the incident. Four people were taken to hospital immediately. Two were rushed to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, while two others, including the teenage boy, were taken to Arrowe Park Hospital.
This is tragic and my heartfelt condolences go to the families affected.
It could have been anybody’s child. She was just on a school trip.
It’s heartbreaking for the families and of course, the coach driver as well. We wake up every day not knowing what the day ahead brings us.
My thoughts also go out to the driver and his family and the children.
This is utterly heartbreaking. You never send your children to school and not expect them to return home safely. What should have been a normal day took such a tragic turn for the worse. My heart goes out to all the families and emergency services involved, and I hope that all those affected get the ongoing support that they will need.
This is extremely sad news, but this is why we should make the most of the time that we’ve got on this earth and be kind to one another because life can be cut short so quickly.
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