Off-duty ambulance worker jumped into river to save screaming children after bus crash - as 'hero' driver, 69, and girl, 16, are still in hospital with major injuries

Daily Mail​

20 hours ago

An off-duty ambulance worker jumped into a river to save screaming children after a bus crash yesterday, as police confirmed the 'hero' driver and a 16-year-old schoolgirl remain in hospital with major injuries.
The bus, which was carrying 19 children and the driver at the time of the crash, careered down a busy road and collided with a car before leaving the edge of the street and toppling into a river.
The double-decker crashed yesterday morning at around 10am in Eastleigh, Hampshire, while carrying children on their way to Barton Peveril College.
The driver, a 69-year-old male, and a 16-year-old girl suffered serious injuries and are still in hospital.
Three other teenagers, two girls and boy all aged 17, sustained serious injuries but have since been discharged from hospital.
The other 15 passengers, aged between 16 and 18, all received minor injuries, with three of them needing hospital treatment.
It has since been reported that the driver informed passersby who rushed to help that the brakes had failed and the accelerator jammed.
Ambulance team leader Jade Etheridge, who lives nearby, saw people 'gathered around the railings' shortly after the incident and her first instinct was to go into the water to help the 'screaming children'.
After everyone had been rescued Ms Etheridge, who works for the 111 service for South Central Ambulance Service, had to walk home 'covered in mud and blood'.
'There was the bus driver, bless his heart, he was shouting for help,' Ms Etheridge, 28, said.
'He was up to his chest in mud and I could see him laying sideways across out of the seat. There was another girl, a teenage girl, screaming.
'I don't know if they managed to push that off to get out, but I smacked the back of the bus and said somebody help me up.
'I was sinking in the mud. There was a lad upstairs, shouting down they were stuck and that somebody was injured.'
Another man, who did not have first aid training, also boarded the bus with a medical kit to help the injured passengers.
Ms Etheridge took the lead, directing those who could 'walk and talk' off the bus so she could triage the five people who were more seriously injured.
'I checked all of them when they were getting off the back of the bus,' she continued.
One video captured a young woman walking along the street as the bus careered along the road in Eastleigh, Hampshire
'They had bumps, bruises, bloody noises. I checked them all. There were a couple of quite nasty head injuries, a lad with probably a dislocated arm.
'Apparently the bus driver had shouted for them to brace themselves. Two of the students, I did do first aid on, but everybody that was up walking and talking we got off the bus.
'We had to triage the more serious injuries. If you can walk and talk, then out of the way, because there were five that were taken to hospital, and a couple of them were quite seriously injured.'
Ms Etheridge praised the other good Samaritan who had jumped into help without any training.
She said: 'I think he deserves credit for jumping into a situation that was quite frankly terrifying,' she said. 'You don't know what you're going to find in a situation like that.
'When I got into the bus, it was a puddle of water, and by the time I was getting off, it was up to my shin.
'It was a sinking bus, it's not deep but it was cold, wet, muddy and we had nothing but a first aid kit to help these people. After everything, I've walked home, covered in mud, covered in blood.'
Local resident Kelly West was working from home at the time and ran outside when she heard screeching and saw the bus 'come careering into the river'.
She told BBC News on Thursday that she spoke to the driver who told her he was 'doing the best he could to avoid cars as he was coming down the road'.
At least five ambulances were at the scene on the residential Bishopstoke Road and an air ambulance landed near the crash site, which was cordoned off by police.
Fire crews were seen with stretchers on hand to take people off the bus which was carrying passengers from Barton Peveril Sixth Form College in the town.
This morning police confirmed that the bus had been safely removed from the scene and the road has been reopened.
Yesterday footage from inside the Bluestar 607 vehicle showing students clinging to the seats on the top deck as the countryside rushes past the windows with horrifying speed.
The teenagers' voices get more and more panicked as they shout down the bus 'we're gonna die. We're actually gonna die. What's he doing? We're actually going to die!'.
They claim the bus has just had a 'major crash and now he's speeding off', while the front window appears to have been smashed.
Bruno Aguiar is a local electrician was on his way to work when his van was almost struck by the bus full of college students.
'I saw the bus coming really fast. I swerved to the pavement, and the bus came into the middle of both lanes,' he said. 'It hit a red Corsa from a driving school and then went into the river.
'I went to check on the driver, and he was asking for an ambulance. I saw [the bus] was full of children.'
Bruno was quick to take action, pulling the ladder from his van to help bring the students to safety.
He added that another man wearing a Bluestar uniform, believed to have been passing by, was also 'really quick to help' to remove the children from the bus.
Inspector Andy Tester of Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary at the scene yesterday
'I went to get the ladder off my van and helped the children get off the bus,' Bruno added. 'There were no adults except the bus driver on the bus.
'I wasn't thinking clearly. The children were all panicked. A child doesn't think; they wait for help,' he added: 'I think it was a miracle nobody was more seriously injured.'
The driver of the bus has since been hailed as a hero for avoiding a more serious incident.
Dr John Fisher, who helped rescue students, told the BBC: 'It feels that he tried to ditch it to avoid a head-on crash... it's a bit of a miracle.'
'We think the driver is a bit of a hero,' he added.
And James West, who also lives locally, told the Daily Echo: 'I think he was a bit of a hero in all honesty, because he could've taken out cars, houses. He could've taken out pedestrians.
'It sounds like he's had to do the best he can to try and minimise. If you suddenly slam the anchors on, would it tip over?'
A father of one of the passengers said his 17-year-old son thought the crash happened quickly and could not see what caused the incident.
Scott Agass said: 'We are just waiting for our son who was onboard. They are not in the bus at the moment, I think they are all out. He said he was sitting there with a blanket and a monitor on his finger.
'He doesn't really know what happened or what caused it. I suppose it just happened so quick. All he saw was that it crashed and gone in the river.'
Keith Trenchard, from Eastleigh, had been out with his family when he came across the scene. He said: 'We arrived 20 minutes after and it was all closed off. They have the divers here as well from the police and the fire brigade.'
Local resident Jonathan Holdstock said: 'It was half ten when I heard a bunch of sirens. When I heard it was a bus in the river I didn't believe it.'
Inspector Andy Tester, of Hampshire Constabulary, said a total of 20 people were onboard the bus, 19 of which were passengers.
He said: 'It must have been terrifying and my thoughts are very much with what the children and the driver on the bus, who must have had a terrifying experience.'
Mr Tester added that several people including the driver were trapped on board when emergency services arrived.
He said: 'There were a large number of specialist resources helping to get people out of the bus.
The double-decker bus left the road and ended up in the water in Eastleigh, Hampshire
'Some people had got themselves out of the bus, and it was obviously important to us to triage the injured people, to assess the people who were still stuck in the bus, and to make sure we had accounted for everyone.'
Mr Tester also praised the bravery of members of the public and emergency services who helped at the scene.
He said: 'So there was a lot of bravery shown by many people who were first on scene, who didn't have training to work in water and weren't equipped, but quickly backed up by our fire and ambulance colleagues who did have the right training to make it safe and make it a safe working environment.'
Mr Tester added: 'We believe that everyone, every passenger on the bus, was a student heading to Barton Peveril College.
'And I would stress at this point that all of those, all all of those people, their families, have been notified, and that has all been done so they are in touch with their loved ones.'
He continued: 'There's no indication at the moment as to why the bus left the road, and that is what's going to form part of our immediate investigation.
'We hope to open the road within 12 hours. That is our best hope.
'We will do the best we can to shorten that but, as you'll appreciate, we have to do a thorough examination of the scene, and then there's a complex recovery of getting the bus out of the river.'
A spokesperson for South Central Ambulance Service said: 'We have sent multiple units to the incident including five ambulances, two helicopters, and specialist response units.
'We're continuing to support and assess patients on scene. All patients have been removed from the bus. Three high priority patients are being taken to hospital. Around 14 with less serious injuries are being treated on scene.'
At least five ambulances were at the scene on a residential road in the Hampshire town on Thursday
A spokesperson for Barton Peveril Sixth Form College has said: 'We are aware of an incident involving the College 607 Bus. College staff are working closely with the police to ensure the safety and well-being of all students.
'We ask that people do not attend the actual scene. For concerned parents, an Incident Centre has been established at The Hub at Bishopstoke.
'An officer and college staff will be available at the Hub to provide updates and address any questions you may have.'
A Hampshire Constabulary spokesman said: 'We are currently dealing with an incident on Bishopstoke Road in Eastleigh, after College Bus 607 for Barton Peveril students left the carriageway into a river.
'Emergency services are in attendance and the road has been closed so please avoid the area.
'It is anticipated the road may be closed for up to 12 hours for investigation and recovery work.
'Everyone on the bus has been accounted for and all injured persons are being treated by the ambulance service.'
A Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service spokesman said: 'We are on scene of an RTC involving one double decker bus that went off the road in Bishopstoke, Eastleigh.
'Fire crews from Eastleigh, St Mary's, Redbridge, Hightown and Portchester are in attendance alongside emergency service colleagues.
'People are asked to avoid the area to help emergency services deal with this incident.'
Richard Tyldsley, Bluestar general manager, said: 'One of our buses, carrying students to Barton Peveril College, was involved in an incident earlier this morning in Bishopstoke Road, Eastleigh.
'Reports suggest the bus left the highway and came to rest in a shallow river.
'There were 19 passengers on-board at the time. Our driver and at least two of the passengers have confirmed injuries, and we are awaiting further updates on the status of others on-board.
'We do not currently have full details of their injuries and are following their progress closely.
'Our thoughts are with everybody involved, and we wish those who were injured a full and speedy recovery.
'At this time, we do not know the circumstances behind this incident and are carrying out an immediate investigation. We are also assisting the police as they carry out their own inquiries.'