Mother drives car through Australian school gate, killing one child and injuring four others

MELBOURNE: A mother picking up a child crashed a car through the gates of a Melbourne school on Tuesday (Oct 29), fatally injuring one child and seriously injuring four others, police said.

The 40-year-old mother had picked up a child from Auburn South Primary School and was making a U-turn on the road outside when she crashed through a fence and into an outdoor table where five children were sitting after 2.30pm local time. Police Insp. said Craig McEvoy.

“It appears it is a tragic accident,” McEvoy told reporters.

An 11-year-old boy was taken to hospital with serious injuries and later died, a police statement said.

Two 11-year-old girls, a 10-year-old girl and a 10-year-old boy were taken to hospital with serious injuries, police said.

The driver was arrested and detained at the scene, police said. Neither she nor her student passenger were injured.

Police interviewed the mother, McEvoy said, but had no further updates. Specialist accident investigation detectives attended the scene to collect evidence.

Video showed the station wagon coming to a stop with apparent damage to the left front fender after driving through a recreational area covered with shade cloth. -AP