SANTA CRUZ, St Elizabeth – A mini bus packed with passengers travelling from Savanna-la-Mar to Kingston crashed into a parked garbage truck in Santa Cruz yesterday, leaving five people in hospital last night.

Police last night were still piecing together the information on the accident which occurred at about 10:20 am on Pagon Drive, located north of the bustling town centre and popularly used as a bypass road.

Investigating officer, Corporal Noel Ford of the Santa Cruz police, confirmed that five people had been admitted to the Black River and Mandeville hospitals. Two of those – an eight year-old girl with head injuries and a 39 year-old man nursing back injuries – were categorised as being in critical condition. The eight-year-old was still unconscious up to last night.

All told, about 15 people sought medical attention at the two hospitals or at private doctors, Ford said.

The driver of the bus, who is alleged to have left the scene as a passenger in a motor car, was being sought by the police last night.

Ford, who told the Observer that the accident was “without doubt the result of excessive speeding” said the investigation had been made more difficult by the state of shock among the bus passengers in the immediate aftermath of the crash.

“We had people who couldn’t remember their names, couldn’t remember if they were travelling alone or with anyone else and who seemed unsure as to where they were, where they were coming from or where they were going,” said Ford.