Nine children were taken to hospital after fumes from a school bus in Wellington caused respiratory and stomach pains. The incident occurred on Wednesday, after a 44‑student bus suffered a blown head gasket at about 10:30 a.m. while traveling on a motorway en route to a kapa haka event at Te Papa Museum, New Zealand’s national museum.
After arriving at the museum, some students began feeling unwell. Emergency services assessed the children at the scene, with 19 reporting symptoms. Nine were transported to hospital for treatment.
Officials say the bus’s head gasket failure released fumes that affected the pupils. The incident has prompted a review of vehicle maintenance protocols for school transport.