07 July 2023 , 17:50
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Loved ones of a schoolgirl killed when a 4x4 ploughed into an end of term tea party have spoken of their devastation, saying: “You will always be our shining star.”
Police yesterday released a woman on bail after a £70,000 Land Rover careered off the road and slammed into kids playing on the grass outside the Study Preparatory school, Wimbledon.
An eight year-old girl was killed in the horror crash.
Cops confirmed a second eight-year-old girl and a woman in her 40s were fighting for life in hospital after the horror crash.
A number of other people - including a seven-month-old girl - were taken to hospital and their conditions have been assessed as not life-threatening.
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An eight year-old girl was killed in the horror crash in at The Study Prep School in Wimbledon, South west London (Peter Macdiarmid/LNP)The injured adults were parents or carers and not staff at the school, Scotland Yard confirmed.
Teachers at the £16,000-a-year school yesterday returned to the school to console each other, hugging and crying.
And devastated friends laid flowers at the gate where the powerful Land Rover Defender veered off the road to cause carnage.
A woman - who had a black eye and her arm a sling - laid a bouquet of roses at the school in south west London with a tribute.
In a note she said: “You will always be our shining star. We will miss you so much.”
Another hand-written message said: “Rip darling... So sorry this happened to you, may you rest peacefully.”
One child wrote: “I will always think of you. I will miss so much. From the Fan family. I miss you. I will never forget you.”
A police cordon was removed to allow floral tributes outside the school on Friday (PA)Mum-of-three Michelle Gilligan, 52, who previously worked at the school and sent her two daughters to the institution, said: “Initially we had no idea what happened, it’s terrible.”
A neighbour - who lives 50 yards from the school - said: “This area is an accident waiting to happen.
“It’s a narrow street and there are hundreds of people dropping off their children every day. Still, I never thought it would end like this.”
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Witnesses yesterday told how they heard the sickening sounds of “scraping metal and then screams” as the crash occurred on Thursday morning.
One said: “It was horrendous. There was crying and wailing. I’ll never forget it.”
One woman said mums on a school WhatsApp group swapped frenzied messages in the immediate aftermath of the tragedy.
She said: “It was terrifying - everyone was panicking. It’s shocking that something like this has happened in a quiet corner of Wimbledon.”
Year Three pupils had gathered with parents and teachers for a traditional end-of-year picnic when the vehicle careered through the fence.
Families have been holding vigils at the bedsides of several injured children, many of whom have broken bones, including a shattered pelvis, locals have said.
Many parents were at the event, while others rushed to the school from work or home to find their children at the school left distraught by the tragedy.
Emotional scenes continued outside the school as it emerged two people were still in a critical condition (Ian Vogler / Daily Mirror)The driver of the car, a 46-year-old woman from Wimbledon, was arrested at the scene on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving.
She was taken to hospital where her condition was assessed as not life-threatening. She has been bailed pending further enquiries to a date in late July.
Detectives from the Met’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit were leading the probe.
Det Chief Supt Clair Kelland, local policing commander for south-west London, said: “It is difficult to imagine the pain and upset the families of those involved are going through and we will do all we can to support them as our investigation continues.
“I know the impact of this tragic incident is also being felt in the wider community and we are working with our partners to ensure the appropriate support is in place.
Ian Hewitt, chairman of the All England Lawn Tennis club, laid flowers at the scene (Getty Images)“I understand many people will want answers about how this happened and there is a team of detectives working to establish the circumstances.”
Faiza Samad said it is a tradition to have a picnic at the school. Her daughter Rania, 12, finished at the primary school last year.
Ms Samad said: “When it happened yesterday all the mums were texting. My friend, her daughter was in Year Two.
“(Her daughter) was in the back of the building. We were all panicking and we were texting each other.”
Rania said: “I was feeling sad when I heard it because it was an eight-year-old girl and it was her last day.”
Ian Hewitt, chairman of the All England Lawn Tennis club, also laid flowers at the scene.
He said: “We feel closely associated with the community. What a tragic incident - we just offer our heartfelt sympathies to all affected.”
A local teacher, who did not want to be named, said: “A friend of mine has friends who have children who go to the school.
“She said they have all kinds of broken bones including a broken pelvis.
“I’m a teacher and I’m a mother and it could have happened to us. It could have happened to anybody.”
Heart wrenching images showed debris from the tea party strewn across the grass outside the school.
Tables and chairs were crushed by the powerful black and gold 3.0-litre X-Dynamic model before it hit the exterior wall of the school’s main hall.
A yellow picnic blanket emblazoned with P2 - the school year - was still on the floor, with a table covered in white tablecloth, fire extinguishers and drinks nearby.
Members of the Wimbledon Common Golf Club, which is opposite the school, held a minute’s silence outside the school gates yesterday.
Speaking afterwards, Peter Thompson, chairman of the golf club, said:
“We’re close neighbours, we’ve got close links with The Study.
“When they were doing their refurbishments they used one of our offices. It has shocked the whole membership.
“It’s just so sad to lose someone so young.”