School van driver seriously hurt after hitting downed powerline

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The van hit a downed power line while exiting the junction.

BINTULU: A woman was seriously injured when the school van she was driving hit a power line which had fallen onto the ground in Tatau today and subsequently caught fire.

Tatau police chief DSP Dennis Bunyan when contacted said the woman’s 11-year-old son, who was in the same van, suffered minor burns on his shoulder and back and is in stable condition at the hospital.

He said the incident happened around 6.45am at the junction of Taman Lee Cheng when the 55-year-old woman was transporting five children, including her son, to school – four to SJK Chung Hua Tatau and one to Chung Hua Kindergarten.

“However, when the van was about to exit the junction, the driver was unaware of the power line on the ground and hit it.

“The driver suffered burn injuries to almost her entire body while a passenger in the front seat also sustained burn injuries,” he said.

Dennis added the other four children were able to escape the van unhurt.

Both the woman and her son were initially sent to the health clinic in Tatau before being placed in Bintulu Hospital for further treatment.

The OCPD also said the junction in question was immediately closed to traffic, while the utility company and a Pan Borneo Highway contractor were notified to take the necessary action.

Meanwhile, the Fire and Rescue Department in a statement said eight firefighters were dispatched to the scene following a distress call, and upon arrival discovered the fire had been put out by members of the public using three extinguishers.