Skibound staff seriously injured in fatal coach crash
Three Skibound staff are in hospital with serious injuries following a coach crash in the Alps which claimed the life of a British driver.
A fourth member of staff has remained in hospital for observation. A further 25 staff who were also injured have been released from hospital to join 23 other passengers who escaped from the crash without injury.
Skibound, a schools ski operator, said the group was now with police, Skibound senior staff and councillors in a local hotel.
The British-owned coach crashed yesterday on a steep mountain road close to the ski resort of Alpe d’Huez. It has been picking up Skibound staff from various resorts across the Alps to bring them back to the UK at the end of the ski season.
Skibound said it had made arrangements for relatives of the four staff in hospital to travel to France today, while those who are able to travel will be flown home.
The chartered coach had begun its journey to the UK from the resort of Serre Chevalier, stopping to collect staff in Alpe d’Huez.
The planned route would have dropped staff off at four feeder points across England. These include London Gatwick (24 passengers), Birmingham (7 passengers), Manchester (10 passengers) with the final stop in Newcastle (11 passengers). The coach was then to return to Classic Coaches’ headquarters in Sunderland.
One of the two British drivers on the coach was killed when it ran off the mountain road, slamming into a rock and bursting into flames.
A spokeswoman for Skibound said: "At the moment, our thoughts are with those who have been involved in the accident and we wish to extend our deepest sympathies to them and their relatives and friends. We would like also to pay a special tribute to the superb work of the French emergency services and the work of the British consulate.
"The exact cause of the accident is as yet not known and we must await the report from the accident investigation team and local authorities in France before any comment can be made. We have made arrangements for an independent safety specialist to be sent to the scene to support the investigation"
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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