GIRL KILLED IN SCHOOL BUS CRASH 'WAS WEARING SEATBELT'
A teenager who died when a school bus crashed on a motorway was one of the few on board wearing a seatbelt at the time, an inquest has heard.
Jessica Baker, 15, was on her way to West Kirby Grammar School in Wirral on Merseyside, when the coach crashed on the northbound side of the M53 just after 08:00 BST on 29 September.
The inquest in Liverpool heard driver Stephen Shrimpton, 40, who also died, was suffering heart disease which caused him to collapse at the wheel.
The coroner said Jessica's post-mortem examination showed bruising consistent with wearing a seatbelt.
Andre Rebello, senior coroner for Liverpool and Wirral, said CCTV showed many on the bus were "unrestrained" but Jessica appeared to be sitting in place, "not moving in the same way everyone else is moving".
Mr Rebello said: "It would be my ruling it is more likely than not that Jessica was wearing a seatbelt at the time of this collision."
About 50 students, travelling to West Kirby and Calday Grange grammar schools, were on the coach at the time of the crash.
The inquest heard CCTV showed Mr Shrimpton, who was not wearing a seatbelt, slump to his left-hand side before the vehicle left the motorway, went up an embankment, hit a tree and rolled back on to the hard shoulder.
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