Cottage became makeshift hospital at crash scene

A school bus which had travelled the quiet country road thousands of times lay shattered on its side tonight.

The small community of Kentstown in County Meath struggled to cope as word spread that five young girls were dead after the bus spun around and crashed into a ditch.

A cottage was turned into a makeshift hospital to cope with the walking wounded, while parents rushed to the scene to attend to their young ones.

Others, less fortunate, were directed to Navan General Hospital in search of their teenagers.

Dozens of gardai, ambulance workers, council and bus staff milled around the scene.

The bus lay overturned in the ditch with all its windows shattered, while just yards away two cars stood smashed.

Council workers, who were sealing the road, were at a loss for words to explain what had happened.

The group of council workers rushed to the bus, where they saw dazed children wandering around with blood pouring from heads, arms and legs.

Some were still trapped on the bus, while others had been thrown through the glass window by the force of the impact.

“There was a lot of roaring and crying. Some of the lads gave them medical tips, and then the ambulances arrived; they were very quick,” said the council worker.

The school bus, which had over 50 pupils on board from four local secondary schools, was travelling from Navan in the direction of Kentstown.

There had been a light shower of rain, but the driver was well familiar with the territory, as the roadworks had been in place for weeks.

In the events that followed, the bus was spun around and toppled over onto its side.

Gardaí were unable to confirm if the bus had been in collision with the two smashed cars, or had merely swerved trying to avoid them.

James Murphy, 14, a local boy who attends the same school as some of the children on the bus, said: “I was worried about my friend, but he is OK. I got on the phone to him; he was just coming out of Drogheda Hospital.”

However, for other friends and family, the news was far more bleak.

One man, a resident of Navan, said: “It is a terrible tragedy.

“We will all know someone once we hear the names; they are all local.”

People in Kentstown gathered at the Church of the Assumption at 8pm to light candles for the victims of the tragedy – as well as the many survivors.

Young students hugged each other and wiped tears from their eyes as they emerged from the church.

“It is very worrying,” said one student, who had been told that her best friend was in a critical condition in hospital.

“It is hard to put into words how we feel.”