Two women die after coach overturnsTwo women have died and five people have been left seriously injured after a coach left an icy road and overturned in Cornwall on one of the coldest nights of the year, police have said.
The coach was carrying 48 passengers back from a Christmas lights attraction in Mousehole when it apparently hit a tree, went through a hedge and turned over on its side in Townshend, a village near Penzance.
A total of 47 people were hurt in the crash, with the majority described as "walking wounded" by Devon and Cornwall Police. A helicopter from RAF Chivenor helped ferry the injured to Trelike Hospital in Truro.
Police said both of the women who died were from west Cornwall. One was pronounced dead at the scene while the other died in hospital.
No other vehicle is believed to have been involved, but officers said "treacherous" roads impeded the rescue services' attempts to get to the scene. A police car slid into the overturned coach after apparently slipping on sheet ice, but Superintendent Martin Orpe said the driver was unhurt.
Devon and Cornwall Police urged people not to travel through the county unless absolutely necessary.
Copyright © Press Association 2009
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