- Truck drove into the kindergarten
- One adult dead, child seriously injured
One adult has been killed and a child seriously injured after a tanker truck crashed through a playground north of Melbourne.
The water tanker crashed into the Macedon Ranges Montessori Preschool in Riddells Creek at 2.20pm on Monday.
A child was taken to the Royal Children’s Hospital with serious but non-life-threatening upper body injuries. An adult has been confirmed dead following the collision.
The adult has yet to be formally identified.
“Emergency services are currently at Riddells Creek following a collision,” a Victoria Police spokesperson said.
‘The driver of the truck was also taken to hospital for observation. The exact circumstances are under investigation.”
It is believed the vehicle crashed into a utility pole on Main Road before the trailer crashed into a kindergarten playground.
Local residents reported hearing the sound of fire alarms from the nearby fire station just after 2:20 p.m.
An adult has been killed and a child seriously injured after a water tanker crashed into a nursery school north of Melbourne
Concerned parents were initially separated from students by fallen power lines, but were then able to hug their children after crews cleared the danger.
Police closed the roads around the school after power lines were down during the accident
Parents were initially kept outside due to fallen power lines, while the children were kept inside for their own safety.
The students’ parents were seen from a television helicopter hugging each other as they were reunited.
An air ambulance arrived on scene and paramedics worked on the injured.
An employee at a local bakery told Daily Mail Australia that initial reports suggested the truck crashed into a car.
“We’re told a truck rear-ended a car and the back of the truck trailer entered the preschool,” she said.
“The truck driver went to the hospital.”
The worker described the scene as “chaos.”
“I knew it was something serious when the alarm went off at the fire station behind us and shortly after they left I heard two ambulances coming,” another resident posted online.
“All emergency services arrived very quickly and power company workers are there working on the fallen power lines,” said another witness.
“Not a pleasant scene to see an ambulance helicopter arrive and land, and I so hope everyone is okay and safe.”
One witness revealed that they heard the accident just before the crash.
Emergency services, including police, firefighters and paramedics, remain on scene in Riddells Creek
‘Those poor children. I was sitting in front of two cars. The sound was terrifying,” they said.
‘Terrible, we didn’t see the truck fly off the road, just the power lines coming down… just terrible.’
Roads were closed in all directions around the school.
It is understood workers from Macedon Ranges Shire Council have just started roadworks in the same area in a bid to improve road and pedestrian safety.
The incident comes just 13 days after a car killed 11-year-old boy Jack Davey and injured four other students after crashing through the fence of Auburn South Primary School in Hawthorn East, Melbourne.
Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.