The driver of a bus carrying 30 passengers has died after the vehicle careered down an embankment in the Kangaroo Valley on the New South Wales south coast.
Police say the chartered minibus was travelling on Moss Vale Road at Fitzroy Falls just before 7:30pm (AEST) when it crashed through a guard rail and went down a 30-metre embankment near the bottom of Barrengary Mountain.
When police, ambulance helicopters and the fire brigade arrived they found the male bus driver had been killed.
It is believed he was thrown from the bus on impact.
Twenty-seven of the passengers were injured and ambulance spokeswoman Penelope Little says several people had to be freed from the wreckage.
A 70-year-old man was flown to Sydney’s Liverpool Hospital in a critical condition but is now stable.
Ten others are in a serious condition in hospital.
“The ambulance helicopter landed at the Kangaroo Valley showground to fly the most critically injured to hospital,” ambulance spokeswoman Penelope Little said.
“The most critically injured patient of this collision was a 70-year-old male. He had head, neck, chest, arm and abdominal injuries.”
Two rescue helicopters had been dispatched to move the most seriously injured.
Police from the Crash Investigation Unit attended the scene and inquiries are continuing.
Motorists had been advised to avoid the area if possible.
Police have set up a hotline for anyone concerned they might have family or friends on the bus.
Inspector Wayne Thorpe from the Shoalhaven Area Command says the passengers are lucky to be alive.
“There were some very large trees that the bus by some miracle has managed to go through,” he said.
“Even though this is a tragic situation with one person deceased and several other people critical, it could have been a lot worse.”
Anyone requiring further information can contact police on (02) 4421 9604.