Minibus crash leaves 12 young men in hospital

Dec 11 2011 by Coreena Ford, Sunday Sun

TWELVE young men were rushed to hospital after a horror smash when their minibus careered off a road in icy conditions.

The group – all aged between 18 and 20 – had been on a night out in Cockermouth, Cumbria, and were travelling home to Millom when their bus left the A595 and rolled over onto its side.

Every passenger, and the driver, were left with injuries in the crash, which happened at around 2.35am yesterday morning, south of Gosforth, Cumbria.

A spokesman for Cumbria Police said everyone had been taken to the West Cumberland Hospital in Whitehaven, with some suffering from serious injuries.

None of the injuries are deemed to be life-threatening, however.

Wintry weather has been blamed for the smash, and a police investigation has been launched.

The spokesman for Cumbria Police added: “It is believed this incident has occurred as a result of the drop in temperature and the roads becoming slippery due to ice and the inclement weather conditions.”

A police investigation is ongoing.

The crash comes as weathermen warned the region to brace itself for a continuing wintry battering in the week ahead, with snow already covering parts of Cumbria and County Durham and some other areas due for at least four inches of snow.

Temperatures are also set to dip to -6C by Monday.

High winds have also brought chaos to the region and two householders had lucky escapes after trees smashed into their homes.

A terrified family from Sunderland feared for the life of a two-year-old girl when a 20ft tree crashed onto their house.

Jean Simmons, 67, said granddaughter Layla had been asleep upstairs at the time.