Ms Catherine King (Ballarat, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'd like to extend my thanks to our emergency services personnel, our health services, both in Ballarat and across metropolitan Melbourne, and the Loreto school community for their incredible efforts in rescuing and supporting the 27 students, the teachers and the driver who were involved in that awful bus crash near Bacchus Marsh last week.

Like so many in my community of Ballarat and across the country, I was pretty shocked to wake to the news and the images of the crash on the Western Highway. It didn't take very long, after seeing that it was a Little's bus and hearing the news that it was an all-girls school, to know exactly where the students, the teachers and the driver had come from. As a parent, it must have been absolutely the stuff of nightmares. Leaving in the early hours of the Wednesday morning, with great enthusiasm, the 27 Loreto students were to take part in a NASA-run space camp, the trip of a lifetime, initially delayed because of the pandemic.

Frankly, when you see the images and you hear about what happened, it is absolutely extraordinary that there was no loss of life. I understand the bus actually flipped four times, so it is incredible. It is a testament to our emergency services and hospital staff, who worked tirelessly all morning to make sure that those injured were safely transported and cared for. I understand the bus company itself also assisted in transporting a number of girls and their parents to hospital in Ballarat.

Of the 32 people who sustained injuries in the crash, I know two young women are still in hospital, with the rest now discharged. It is an incredibly traumatic event to have occurred and it will have lasting physical and mental health effects on all involved. I'm very grateful for the excellent support services that Loreto have put in place. It's a very tight-knit community and a very supportive one that I know will wrap their arms around the affected members.

I particular want to say, to our paramedics, our police officers, our rescue firefighters, our SES, our tow truck drivers and, of course, our nurses and doctors, a heartfelt thankyou. It's also an important reminder about the use of seat belts, without which I'm sure the outcome would have been much more disastrous. There will of course be an intensive investigation into the crash. It's important that we let those investigations do that job so we can learn what happened in this accident.

My thoughts are with all those involved but particularly with the two young women still in hospital. I know it'll be a long road to recovery, but I do want them to know that all of the community is behind them. You have our very, very best thoughts and care for your recovery in the weeks, months and, potentially, years ahead. I am so proud of how the young women of Loreto looked after each other, stayed calm and assisted in their own rescue efforts. You're a credit to the school community and a credit to the community of Ballarat.

James Stevens (Sturt, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In accordance with standing order 193, the time for members' constituency statements has concluded.