Driver dead, kids injured after school bus crash on Highway 401 near London, Ont.

A school bus driver has died and four children have been taken to hospital with minor injuries following a school bus crash off the westbound lanes of Highway 401 in London, Ont., Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) announced Sunday.

The crash and the ensuing investigation have closed the highway's westbound lanes between Veteran's Memorial Parkway and Highbury Avenue.

The single-vehicle collision happened around 9:40 a.m., according to OPP Const. Steven Duguay, who said the bus left the roadway before tipping over and coming to a stop.

"We've got 42 passengers on board that school bus, four of which were transported to the hospital with minor injuries," Duguay said.

The school bus driver was pronounced dead on scene, according to Duguay. He said it's too early in the investigation to determine what caused the driver's death.

Police have no plans to release the name of the driver, who they confirmed to be a 52-year-old man from the Waterloo region.

Within two hours of the crash, police set up a command centre for the incident at the East Lions Community Centre in southeast London, where teary-eyed parents could be seen reuniting with their children on Sunday afternoon.

Parents and students told CBC News the bus was taking a Grade 9 class from the Kitchener Waterloo Collegiate and Vocational School, also known as the Kitchener Waterloo Collegiate Institute (KCI), to Point Pelee National Park for a multi-day school trip.

Charlotte Weldon, 13, was among the students that exited the community centre carrying pillows, bags and other items she brought for the trip. She spoke to CBC News still wearing mud-smeared clothing she wore while escaping from the bus.

“Something hit it. The whole bus just kept going right, and then it ended up sideways in a ditch. We opened the emergency hatch and everyone was helping people get out,” Weldon said.

Linnea Knight said she was on the road almost as soon as her husband received a call from her twin daughters Maddie and Lily Knight.

“It was not the morning we expected. Maddie was freaking out and everyone was freaking out, and it just sounded loud [over the phone]. I ran upstairs, grabbed a sweater and my keys, and said ‘Where am I going?’” she said.

Maddie and Lily described the moments during and after the crash as hectic and scary.

“We were at the back of the bus, we saw wood flying, and then after that we swerved down into the ditch,” Maddie said. “Everyone fell on me because I was on the side that hit the ground.”