Bus crash driver before prosecutors
The driver of a coach which crashed, killing a teacher, after a school trip to France tells prosecutors he has ‘no recollection’ of the incident.
Derek Thompson, 47, is being investigated for involuntary homicide and involuntary wounding after the bus he drove flipped over and plunged to the bottom of a motorway embankment in the Champagne-Ardenne region of northern France.
Teacher Peter Rippington, 59, died in the crash. His wife, Sharon, and daughter, Amy, were also injured.
In a statement released after a court hearing in Chalons-en-Champagne, prosecutor Christian de Rocuinguy said: “In his presentation before a judge late Monday afternoon, the driver explained that he had no recollection of the circumstances of the accident. While in custody, after denying falling asleep, the driver acknowledged that it was possible that he was drowsy.”
Conditions
Mr Thompson has now been allowed to return to the UK, but with conditions attached, the prosecutor said.
Part of these include informing “the judge of any travel outside Great Britain”, and banning him from contact with victims and families of these”. He was also banned from driving on French territory.
The Foreign Office has said that most of the 49 British nationals on the coach are back in the UK, but seven people remained in hospital in France.
Tributes have continued to pour in for Mr Rippington. Bryan Maybee, chairman of governors of Alvechurch Middle School, described him as a “dediocated and inspirational teacher”.