AN ANNUAL secondary school outing to Alton Towers could be scrapped following the rollercoaster crash which left four teenagers seriously injured.

Around 50 staff and pupils from St Stephen’s High could miss out on the eagerly-anticipated yearly outing to the Staffordshire theme park after an incident there on Tuesday left a total of 16 people injured.

Alton Towers has been closed for the past two days and will remain shut again today to allow officials from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to carry out an investigation.

Pupils and teachers from St Stephen’s were due to set off for the theme park before the end of term in a couple of weeks.

But a message posted on the school’s Twitter feed said ‘no decision’ had as yet been made about whether it would still go ahead.

Pupils from S4-S6 have paid around £30 each for the excursion.

Inverclyde Council officials say the outing will only go ahead if education chiefs are content with safety.

A spokesman said: “We are closely monitoring the situation following Tuesday’s accident and will only go ahead with the trip if we are completely satisfied — along with our health and safety colleagues — that it is safe.” At around 2pm on Tuesday two carriages — one empty and the other full with passengers — collided on the park’s £18m Smiler ride.

It left people trapped at a height of 25ft and at a 45-degree angle for up to four-and-a-half hours.

A 27-year-old man who suffered serious injuries had to be airlifted to hospital.

Alton Towers owners Merlin Entertainment said: “Due to the ongoing investigation into the incident on The Smiler earlier this week the theme park will remain closed.

“Guests with pre-booked tickets and those arriving at the theme park will have the choice of a full refund or an alternative dated ticket.

“Guests with pre-booked tickets have the option to use their tickets at an alternative attraction.” AN ANNUAL secondary school outing to Alton Towers could be scrapped following the rollercoaster crash which left four teenagers seriously injured.

Around 50 staff and pupils from St Stephen’s High could miss out on the eagerly-anticipated yearly outing to the Staffordshire theme park after an incident there on Tuesday left a total of 16 people injured.

Alton Towers has been closed for the past two days and will remain shut again today to allow officials from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to carry out an investigation.

Pupils and teachers from St Stephen’s were due to set off for the theme park before the end of term in a couple of weeks.

But a message posted on the school’s Twitter feed said ‘no decision’ had as yet been made about whether it would still go ahead.

Pupils from S4-S6 have paid around £30 each for the excursion.

Inverclyde Council officials say the outing will only go ahead if education chiefs are content with safety.

A spokesman said: “We are closely monitoring the situation following Tuesday’s accident and will only go ahead with the trip if we are completely satisfied — along with our health and safety colleagues — that it is safe.” At around 2pm on Tuesday two carriages — one empty and the other full with passengers — collided on the park’s £18m Smiler ride.

It left people trapped at a height of 25ft and at a 45-degree angle for up to four-and-a-half hours.

A 27-year-old man who suffered serious injuries had to be airlifted to hospital.

Alton Towers owners Merlin Entertainment said: “Due to the ongoing investigation into the incident on The Smiler earlier this week the theme park will remain closed.

“Guests with pre-booked tickets and those arriving at the theme park will have the choice of a full refund or an alternative dated ticket.

“Guests with pre-booked tickets have the option to use their tickets at an alternative attraction.”