A YOUNG brother and sister are critically ill in hospital after they were knocked down in Co Antrim.
The children were hit by a white Audi A3 on Staffordstown Road near Randalstown while they were getting off a school bus to cross to their home on Greenan Road at around 4.40pm on Tuesday.
Police said the crash was not a hit-and-run.
It is understood the brother and sister, aged between 11 and 14, attend St Patrick's College in Maghera, Co Derry.
The girl is thought to have suffered head injuries in the crash while the boy is believed to have injuries including a broken leg.
The children were taken to Antrim Area Hospital. They were due to be transferred to the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast on Tuesday evening.
Staffordstown Road was closed at its junction with Greenan Road following the crash.
Police have appealed for anyone who saw the collision to contact officers in Antrim on 101.
Sinn Féin MLA Declan Kearney said the children were from a "large, highly respected family in the south Antrim area".
"It's a very tragic situation. My thoughts are with their family."
He said the crash happened at dusk on a road that has become increasingly busy.
SDLP Antrim councillor Roisin Lynch said the crash was a parent's "worst fear".
"My immediate thoughts and prayers are with the two children who remain in a critical condition following this terrible crash," she said.
"My thoughts and the thoughts of the entire community will also be with their families at this incredibly difficult time."
She added: "This is a horrific experience for any family to go through."
A total of four young children have been knocked down in the last two weeks.
Nine-year-old Liam McCallum remained critically ill in the Royal Victoria Hospital on Tuesday night after he was hit by a car on Toberdoney Road in Liscolman, Co Antrim, at around 4pm on Tuesday of last week.
A five-year-old boy knocked down in Malcolmson Park in Magheralin, Co Down, on Thursday afternoon remained in a stable condition in the same hospital on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, two women in their seventies have been killed while crossing a road in Co Louth.
The friends had just got off a bus and were heading to their parked car on the N2 near Ardee at around 6.30pm on Monday when they were hit by an oncoming car.
They were named locally as Josie Duff (79) and Kathy McDonald (70).
