An aerial view shows the site where a car involved in an accident with another vehicle skidded into a group of nursery school children on a sidewalk, in Otsu, western Japan May 8, 2019. — Picture courtesy of Kyodo via Reuters
TOKYO, May 8 — Two children were killed and a dozen injured, two critically, in Japan today after a car involved in an accident with another vehicle skidded into a nursery school group out for a walk with their teachers, NHK national television said.
All of the children and two of their teachers were taken to hospital for treatment, NHK added, but two — a boy and a girl, both two years old — died soon after.
Television footage showed two cars slewed at opposite corners of a crossing and brightly coloured school bags scattered on a sidewalk. The children had been returning from an outing to a lake, NHK said.
The two drivers, both women — one aged 62 and the other 52 — were arrested, it said.
Rapidly ageing Japan has recently seen a series of fatal car accidents involving elderly drivers.
In April, a mother and her three-year-old daughter were killed after a car driven by a 87-year-old man ploughed into people on a crosswalk.
The accidents have raised questions about how long people should be allowed to drive. — Reuters