Girl dies in school bus crash

A teenage girl was killed today when a coach carrying schoolchildren to Alton Towers crashed in "horrendous" weather conditions in south-west Scotland. The 17-year-old girl was among a party of 38 pupils and five members of staff from Lanark grammar school who had left before dawn as blizzard conditions gripped large areas of Scotland. She was named by Strathclyde police as Natasha Jade Paton, from Cleghorn, South Lanarkshire. Their coach plunged into a river and landed on its side after crashing through a bridge at a narrow turn on the A73 near Wiston, south-west of Biggar, shortly before 6am. The road had been cleared by snow ploughs, but the sharp bend is known locally as being difficult. The girl was thrown clear of the coach as it crashed through the parapet but was crushed under the vehicle as it fell 10 feet into the river. Superintendent Iain Murray, of Strathclyde police, said: "Our hearts and thoughts go to the family of those who've lost a loved one today and also those who have been seriously injured." Two other seriously injured casualties, one with heart problems and the other with leg injuries, were airlifted to the Southern General hospital in Glasgow by a Royal Navy search and rescue helicopter scrambled from Prestwick air base nearby. A number of other casualties were taken to Wishaw general hospital, while the fire crew treated at least eight other wounded people at the site. All the other pupils and staff were taken to a nearby village hall after initially sheltering in houses and being helped by motorists. Questions are being asked about why the coach, which was en route to Alton Towers theme park in Staffordshire, set off. One parent, Susan Thornton, told the BBC she stopped her son Adam from taking the trip after driving through the appalling weather last night. Thornton, a driving instructor who had cancelled all her lessons for the day after experiencing the conditions, said she was surprised the trip had gone ahead. "I wish somebody had had the sense to make a decision not to drive in that. I do despair of any coach company which would have a driver who would take 39 children in that weather, knowing they were going to Alton Towers. It's just not the weather to be out on the roads at all," she said. "When I woke it was clear that it had been snowing through the night because of the level of snow. It was bad enough at midnight for me to consider him not going. "I am very relieved [to have Adam safe at home] but I'm also very upset for all the people that are involved in that because it is not something they will get over quickly, whether they were injured physically or not. The mental trauma will sadly be with them for the rest of their lives." Mark Atwood, who lives close to the crash scene, told BBC Scotland he had taken in two children soon after the accident. "They were visibly shaken, tearful and very emotionally upset," he said. Atwood praised the helicopter crew, saying: "It was quite amazing how brave the rescue people are because they're flying in conditions I could hardly see; there's pylons, hills and trees and how they landed that helicopter is quite amazing." A police spokesman said the weather was "horrendous". Another resident, Bill Ward, said: "The conditions here are absolutely atrocious and the roads are very, very slippy." Alex Salmond, the first minister of Scotland, and Gordon Brown, the prime minister, expressed their sadness at the tragedy. Salmond said: "Our thoughts are very much with the parents and relatives and staff members caught up in this incident." Brown interrupted a speech in London to say: "At a time when winter weather has returned in spring to many parts of the country, our thoughts are with the families and the friends of those children of Lanark grammar school who have been seriously injured this morning in a bus accident in the north of our country." Jim Hood, the MP for Lanark and Hamilton East, described the accident as "shocking and terrible". He said: "My thoughts and prayers are with the staff and pupils involved and their families. What was supposed to be an enjoyable trip to Alton Towers has ended in horrific circumstances."