The driver of a Mazda sedan,believed to have been in his 30s,died after he crossed to the opposite side of the road,colliding with the bus about 9.15am on Saturday.
A sedan driver was killed and many bus passengers were injured after the car and the bus collided near Dubbo.TNV
Emergency services were called to the crash on the Mitchell Highway just outside Dubbo,where paramedics treated 26 bus passengers for minor injuries.
Seven passengers and the driver were taken to Dubbo Base Hospital for minor and non-life-threatening injuries. One patient has since been discharged and seven others are in a stable condition.
The driver of the Mazda sedan died at the scene. Police believe he was from Central West NSW.
Assistant NSW Police Commissioner Rod Smith said the actions of the bus driver,a 54-year-old woman,had “probably saved the lives of a lot of people”.
“[The passengers] are extremely lucky,it was the good work of the driver at the time who took evasive action. We’re lucky nobody else was injured or killed.”
Dramatic images show the smashed car on its roof,and the highway strewn with shattered glass and metal,metres from a red NSW TrainLink bus that has left the road.
Police have set up a crime scene and launched a critical incident investigation into the collision.
Officers patrolling the highway had activated their lights and sirens as they tried to stop the vehicle about 15 minutes before the fatal crash,after police had been called to a domestic dispute about 8.45am.
They started a pursuit when the car failed to stop,but called it off about a minute later due to safety concerns.
Smith said it was the erratic nature of the driving,rather than the speed,that was the main reason police called off the chase.
“At times it was quite slow in speed,but the vehicle was accelerating,braking,going off the side of the road,and then on the incorrect side of the road,which caused the police some significant concern,” he said. “That’s[why they made] the decision to terminate,but they were still making attempts to try and stop that vehicle by other means.”
Smith said police were yet to formally identify the driver,and it was too early to know the nature of the domestic dispute involving the driver less than an hour before his death.
The bus driver underwent mandatory testing in hospital.
Motorists have been warned of delays as the highway is expected to be closed in both directions for several hours.
A report will be prepared for the coroner.
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