Principal Detained over Accident

Head of kindergarten said she overloaded van because she was running late

Guixi authorities in Jiangxi Province have closed the unlicensed Chunlei Kindergarten in Binjiang township, and police have detained the school's principal, the city government said.

At least 11 young children died after the kindergarten's principal allegedly drove an overloaded and speeding van into a pond.

Zhou Chun'e, the principal, loaded her seven-seat van with 17 people -- 15 children, a female teacher and herself -- for the drive to school on Monday morning. The van plunged into a 3- to 4-meter-deep pond at about 9 am after speeding on a country road, the Guixi publicity department said on its website on Tuesday.

Three children died at the scene, and eight others died at a hospital. Four children remain in intensive care. Zhou and the teacher managed to escape.

According to Xinhua News Agency, the kindergarten has nine teachers and 95 students. The city government said on its website, the kindergarten had been repeatedly warned about operating without a license.

The list of the victims released by the government states that the 11 children who died were 4 to 6 years old.

Zhou told China Central Television that the 15 children were supposed to be taken to school in two trips, but it was late when she left her house, and she decided to make just one trip.

Tong Huibing, a villager whose daughter was in the van, said he was desperate after hearing about the accident. He rushed into the pond and managed to help six children get out before the van sank, according to the CCTV report.