Banksia Road Public School Crash: 52-Year-Old Mother Charged For Killing 2 Students

A 52-year-old woman has been charged by the Australian police for driving her car into a classroom full of students at the Banksia Road Public School in Sydney, killing two eight-year-old boys and injuring more than 20 others Monday.

Maha Al-Shennag, the woman who rammed her Toyota Kluger into a classroom of 24 students at 9:45 a.m. local time Tuesday (5:45 p.m. EST Monday), has been charged with two counts of dangerous driving and one count of negligent driving, according to ABC News.

Al-Shennag is reportedly a widowed mother of four, one of whom is a student at the school where the incident occured. Her license has been suspended following the tragic incident, which has been ruled an accident and not an intentional act. She has been granted bail and will appear at Bankstown Local Court on November 29.

According to the Daily Telegraph, Al-Shennag’s lawyer said that his client was “deeply sorry for the loss and hurt suffered by the children, the school, the families and the community” and that “her thoughts and prayers are with all those affected.”

It is believed that Al-Shennag was not driving under the influence of any drugs or alcohol at the time of the crash. However, investigators are going through her phone and text records to determine if she was on the phone when the crash took place. The vehicle she was driving is also being examined to determine if it had any mechanical fault.

A minute's silence was observed for the young children who lost their lives in the terrible incident during a vigil held outside the school Tuesday. "We all know each other. It's a family. I was calling everyone, 'go check the kids', some parents knew, some parents didn't," Donna Agha, the mother of a student who knew the deceased, said. "No-one expects anything to happen like this … I think all of our kids need counseling, it was horrific."

NSW ambulance superintendent Stephanie Radnidge, who sent 16 vehicles to the scene, described the incident as a “pandemonium” and “distressing.” “They were crying, they were distressed, some were asking for their parents,” Radnidge said, the Guardian reported.

Apart from the two boys who succumbed to their injuries, two eight-year-old girls were also rushed to the Westmead Children's Hospital in a stable condition, and one nine-year-old girl was admitted in a serious condition.

“[Paramedics] are trained the deal with such tragedies, and to respond in an appropriate manner so that the prehospital care is administered,” Radnidge added. “It is very, very hard because we are parents ourselves, we are human beings. But we are highly trained and the best care was delivered this morning to those injured at this site.”

The school's Facebook page announced the details of the tragedy and said that it would be open Wednesday. “Student counsellors will be available to support your son or daughter,” added the post.