Education Ministry reminds school bus drivers of their duty of care for their passengers

The Education Ministry is reminding all school bus drivers of the duty of care they have for the young vulnerable passengers following an incident where a bus tumbled along Ajodhya Prasad Road in Banaras, Lautoka yesterday afternoon and 74 children and one adult were injured.

The Acting Permanent Secretary of Education, Timoci Bure, says the Ministry is deeply saddened by the unfortunate bus accident, and their thoughts and prayers are with the affected families during this difficult time.

He also commended the quick response and timely efforts of the bystanders and other civilians at the scene of the accident, who were able to attend to the injured students and transport them to the Lautoka Hospital for immediate medical attention.

Bure says as of 11am today, a total of 21 students were still admitted at Lautoka Hospital, with one admitted at CWM Hospital in Suva.

He adds that out of the 21, 19 are admitted to the Trauma Ward, one at the Children's Ward, and one at the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit.

The Acting PS says out of the 86 involved, 64 students have been treated and discharged.

Bure says the Senior Medical Officer has confirmed that out of the 19 students admitted to the Trauma Ward, 16 will be discharged today, and all have undergone necessary treatments and care. The medical team will continue to monitor the condition of all the students.

He says in addition to the medical care, the Ministry’s Counselors have provided a counselling plan for staff and students of Delana Primary School, Lautoka.

He further says counselling sessions had begun to provide psycho-social support to those in need.

Meanwhile, Minister for Transport Ro Filipe Tuisawau has confirmed that an investigation is currently underway into the recent accident in Lautoka.

Ro Filipe says that he has directed teams at LTA to conduct a thorough investigation in collaboration with relevant authorities, including a review of its licensing framework and the continuous monitoring of safety standards to be upheld by Public service providers while on the road.

Ro Filipe was at Aspen's Lautoka Hospital today, where he visited the children and stressed that as the Minister responsible for the Land Transport Authority, it is critical to have safety checks and the need to stick to compliance while on the road.

He also acknowledged the team at Aspen for their hard work, including other bystanders who assisted during the accident yesterday.