A seven-year-old Catholic schoolboy is among the two people killed in the Coventry bus crash on Saturday.
Rowan Fitzgerald, from Leamington Spa and who attended St Anthony’s Catholic primary school in the town, died when a double decker bus collided with a supermarket.
Dora Hancox, who was in her 70s and from Nuneaton who was a pedestrian in Trinity Street also died at the scene.
Rowan’s cousin, an eight-year-old girl, was also injured and remains in a stable condition in hospital.
Both children had been travelling with their grandparents on the bus when it crashed.
The collision occurred at 6pm on Saturday evening after the bus travelled along Hale Street colliding with a number of stationary cars and a lamppost before crashing into a Sainsbury’s supermarket.
Terrible scenes in #Coventry where a bus has crashed into a shop. See http://t.co/bpaOPboNWT for LIVE updates pic.twitter.com/IgJs3Thso6
— duncan gibbons (@duncan_gibbons) October 3, 2015
Inspector Paul Bennett, from West Midlands Police Collision Investigation Unit, said: “The families of Rowan and Dora have suffered a devastating loss. Like people the length and breadth of Britain, we extend our deepest sympathies to them during this time.
“As they struggle to come to terms with their loss, they have chosen at this time not to release any images of their loved ones or to provide any words of tribute. They have also asked for people to respect their privacy as they grieve.”
Five other people suffered injuries in the collision and received hospital treatment.
When contacted by The Irish Post, a spokesperson for St Anthony’s Catholic primary school was not able to confirm whether the Fitzgeralds have any Irish family connections.
But in an earlier statement headteacher Jane McSharry said: "Rowan was a perfect, kind, unassuming, gorgeous little boy, with a smile to melt any heart."
The 77-year-old bus driver has not been arrested but continues to help investigators as police renew their plea for people who were in the area at the time to get in touch.
“This was a major crash and we know that there were people in the area at the time who are still yet to speak to our officers,” added Inspector Bennett.
“I would ask those people to come forward now. They may not realise it but they may have a vital piece of information which nobody else holds. This - along with the trawl of CCTV footage and tests at the scene – could make all the difference to this on-going investigation.”
Anyone who witnessed the collision and has not yet spoken to police should call the Collision Investigation Unit on 101 quoting log 1017 of 4/10/15.
