Miracle escape for eight children as school bus crashes off road during icy conditions in Fermanagh
Children escaped without serious injuries when a school bus crashed off the road in icy conditions yesterday morning.
The accident happened on in the Tattygare Road part of Lisbellaw, a small village five miles east of Enniskillen in County Fermanagh.
No other vehicles were involved.
The Education Authority has stated that eight post-primary age children were on board at the time, but are now safely with their families.
Images from the scene show the area, which is close to a primary school, covered in frost.
The bus was left lying in a roadside ditch, pressed up against trees and a hedge, after it skidded off the road.
A PSNI spokeswoman stated: “Police attended a single vehicle road traffic collision involving a bus in the Tattygare Road area of Lisbellaw this morning.
"No serious injuries were reported.”
The Education Authority promised to review the circumstances of the crash.
"Thankfully, no injuries were reported by either the passengers or the driver, and all the children were safely transported from the scene by parents or family members,” stated the body.
The crash came on the same morning the Met Office issued another warning about bad conditions.
Ice and frost could be expected to hit Northern Ireland from around 4pm yesterday afternoon until 10am today, said forecasters.
Icy stretches would lead to some difficult travelling conditions, stated the Met Office, who warned the public to beware of patches of frost on some untreated roads, pavements and cycle paths.
Stated their forecast: “Icy stretches are expected to form on untreated surfaces during Wednesday evening and overnight into Thursday as temperatures drop below freezing.
“A few sleet or snow showers are also likely at times, particularly close to coasts.”
The warning applied to counties Antrim, Armagh, Down, Londonderry, and Tyrone, as well as parts of England, Scotland and Wales.
The Met Office stated that icy conditions were a ‘medium likelihood’ of happening in all of those areas.
The PSNI has warned motorists of difficult driving conditions as the first frost of winter hits.
Stated the police: “Please take extra care on the roads, especially on those which may not have been gritted.
"Clear your windscreen of ice and snow before you set off and remember to slow down and increase the distance between you and the car ahead.”