Girl, 14, dies in school trip bus smash

A GIRL of 14 was killed when a school bus collided with a bin lorry yesterday.

The teenager, named locally as Holly Brown, died at the scene, while a second girl was taken to hospital with minor injuries.

The lorry was said to have gone into the side of the bus ferrying Year 9 and 12 pupils on an art trip from John Taylor High School in Burton-upon-Trent, Staffs.

The bus driver was hailed a hero for preventing further deaths.

A mum whose son was sitting just two seats in front of tragic Holly told how the driver managed to keep the bus under control and bring it to a stop after it was hit in Castle Vale, Birmingham, at around 9am.

She said: “The driver fought to save the other students with courageous driving skills.

“He is a hero. There could have been more casualties but apparently his skills stopped that.”

Holly’s twin sister Emma is a pupil at the same school but it was not clear last night whether she was also on the bus.

Friends tweeted tributes to Holly, who dreamed of becoming a ballet dancer and won a starring role in Sleeping Beauty at the Grand Theatre in Wolverhampton three years ago.

Birmingham city council confirmed the bin lorry was part of its waste management fleet. Both drivers were helping with a “detailed and thorough” probe, police said.