Devastating news has emerged from Sydney today, with two children being pronounced dead after a woman accidentally drove her car into the side of a school.
Maha Al-Shennag, 52, is said to have become distracted while driving her car near Banksia Road Primary School, in Greenacre, at around 9:45am this morning.
She ended up driving her car into the weatherboard exterior of a classroom containing 24 young children.
Two little boys, both aged eight, subsequently suffered from cardiac arrest and passed away shortly after.
“Deeply sorry”?? Tomorrow’s @dailytelegraph front page with news of the Greenacre school tragedy pic.twitter.com/WfiLavbh7J
— Miranda Devine (@mirandadevine) November 7, 2017
Three other children, girls aged eight to nine years, were rushed to hospital for treatment. One is said to be in a serious condition, while the others are thankfully stable.
Paramedics arrived on the scene shortly after, to treat and comfort the ‘distressed’ children and teachers.
The driver was left uninjured in the incident. While police confirmed that they ‘are not looking at this as an intentional act’, they have charged Al-Shennag with two counts of dangerous driving occasioning death, driving in a dangerous manner, and negligent driving.
She has been granted conditional bail, and has been ordered to appear before a local court on November 29.
Speaking to media at the scene of the incident, New South Wales Police Acting Assistant Commissioner Stuart Smith described it as a ‘very, very tragic event’.
Two boys have died after a car crashed into a school in Greenacre. https://t.co/R7789w8gJD pic.twitter.com/cmxERrjRmM
— SBS News (@SBSNews) November 7, 2017
Meanwhile, Superintendent Stephanie Radnidge, from New South Wales Ambulance Service, described the scene of the incident as ‘carnage’.
“There were a number of distressed and overwhelmed children and teachers at a scene of a horrible accident,” she said.
“Obviously they were crying, they were distressed; some were asking for their parents, that’s a natural response in such a terrible set of circumstances.”
We are thinking of all those touched by this horrific tragedy.
