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Five school children were killed and 21 others injured after a privately operated school bus plunged into a pond in Cambodia’s Kandal province on Tuesday morning.
Police arrested the 31-year-old driver, identified by local media as Meun Thearith, as investigators examined the circumstances surrounding the crash.
The accident happened at around 7.10am local time on Tuesday on National Road 8 in Anlong village in Khsach Kandal district, according to police.
The Mitsubishi vehicle, which had 25 seats, was carrying 26 students from Prey Veng province to BELTEI International School’s Prek Tameak campus when it fell into a pond.
The five girls who died were aged between 12 and 14. Three other students suffered serious injuries, while 18 sustained minor injuries.
Police said the vehicle had been privately hired by parents to take their children from Pea Reang district in Prey Veng to school.
Preliminary findings suggest the driver was travelling at high speed when a motorcycle crossed the road at an intersection. He allegedly swerved to avoid it, lost control of the vehicle and drove into the pond.
“Our preliminary assessment suggested that speeding and careless driving may have caused the accident,” the Kandal provincial police commissariat’s quick reaction unit said.
Children look at a damaged vehicle that was carrying students from BELTEI International School, following a crash in which the bus plunged into a pond, killing several students, in Kandal province, Cambodia, 10 November 2026 (Reuters)
Kim Pagna, director of the Asia Injury Prevention Foundation (AIP Foundation) Cambodia, offered condolences to the families and called for stronger road safety measures.
“Schools should be open to receiving comments from the public and students’ parents, although the bus is not under the control of the school. They could have a hotline to take calls from the public or students’ parents about transportation behaviour, both for school buses and private transportation for students,” he said, according to The Phenom Penh Post.
“If possible, I want the authorities to set a speed limit for vehicles transporting students at 30 to 40 kilometres per hour when students are on board. This speed can enable drivers to brake in time in an emergency,” he said.
“It is really sad to see the loss of lives just travelling to school. They are our next generation. The public should share their understanding and give priority to vehicles transporting students. Such understanding should also apply when students are travelling on their own or with their parents,” he said.
