'No way we were getting out of there on our own' - Pupil, 15, tells of North Yorkshire bus flood drama

North Yorkshire County Council officials say the vehicle became engulfed in floodwaters in North Yorkshire, trapping almost 30 children onboard.

It was travelling between Newton-on-Ouse and Tollerton, outside York, when it became stuck due to the flooded New Parks Beck.

Grace Abbott, left, had to be rescued from the bus. She is pictured with her mother Karen Smith. Picture: Richard Doughty

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service crews were sent to the scene, and were currently assisting the passengers from the vehicle.

A spokesman said crews from Huntington, Acomb and Easingwold used swift water rescue equipment at the scene.

The bus stuck in floodwater between Newton-on-Ouse and Tollerton. Picture: North Yorkshire Police Collision Investigation Unit

Fire crews moved the passengers from the stricken vehicle out of the flood water and onto another bus.

At the scene, the single-decker bus lay abandoned in the flood, with the front of the vehicle submerged in the waist-high water. The bus appeared to have been swept off the road by the overflowing river and rested at an angle against a hedge.

A door in the middle of the vehicle had been left open and a window had been smashed towards the rear of the bus. A recovery vehicle arrived and parked on the edge of the flooded road with its lights flashing.

Karen Smith's 15-year-old daughter Grace Abbott was one of the pupils on the bus when it entered flood water and became stuck, and said it was "really scary, a horrible way to start the day".

Grace said: "We felt the bus tilt and that's when water started gushing through the bus. Everyone ran across to the other side of the bus to stop us capsizing and tipping over.

"He was shouting down the phone to the bus company so I thought we had to phone the fire brigade because there was no way we were getting out of there on our own."

Grace said the majority of the 30 children on board the bus were younger than her, with ages of students at the school ranging from ten to 18, and "a lot of the younger children were crying".

She and a friend tried to smash the glass on the emergency, which resulted in cuts to her hand.

Photos taken from inside the bus

She said: "We knew we were waiting for 15 minutes and something bad could happen, or someone could have a panic attack, so we started to smash the emergency window.

"A lot of the younger children were heavily breathing, panicking and crying. The fire brigade came and waded through and opened the emergency door. Because the bus had tilted enough, they could open it. They got the youngest ones off first."

A parent of one of the children, who asked not to be named, said: "The bus slid off the road into the ditch, while filling up with water. At this point one of the kids called the emergency services, while the driver called the bus depot.

Photos taken from inside the bus

"One of the kids broke the back window with her hand and cut it badly, the driver shouted at them not to get out as they would 'drown', they sat on the bus for 15 minutes, it was the fire services that carried the kids off the bus, onto another bus."

On Tuesday afternoon, North Yorkshire County Council confirmed the circumstances behind the incident.

"A contracted school bus service operated by Stephenson’s of Easingwold became stranded in flood water near Newton-on-Ouse this morning. 

"There were approximately 26 children from Easingwold School on the vehicle at the time," a statement read. 

"The Emergency Services attended the scene and all the children and the driver were safely removed from the vehicle by the Fire Brigade. 

"There are no official reports of any injuries. The children were then taken on to the school or collected by parents and taken home."

Students who went in to school were given hot drinks, hot food and some dry clothes. Counselling was also made available.

“Both emergency services and the School were alerted about the incident by a student,” said Phil Benaiges, Easingwold’s headteacher. “I understand that students were very supportive of each other, despite the difficult circumstances. 

"We worked very hard to keep the relevant parents informed, of both the initial incident and when students were safe and sound.  

“I would like to thank the prompt and professional approach of the emergency services, the staff involved in school and particular thanks and best wishes go to our students who dealt so well with a potentially serious situation. 

"I am very proud of their responsible and calm behaviour in the circumstances.”

North Yorkshire County Council said the bus driver went through a road closure sign as the route taken by the bus, between Tollerton and Newton on Ouse, has been closed by the highways authority since the heavy rains and flooding after Christmas. 

“We put road closure signs out during flooding for a very good reason – to keep people safe,” said County Councillor Don Mackenzie, North Yorkshire’s Executive Member for Highways.  “Roads all over the county have been affected by flood waters and some remain so. 

"We would urge drivers to comply for the sake of their own safety and not drive through closure signs when there is flooding. 

"It is not possible to tell how deep the water is on flooded roads and drivers can quickly find themselves in trouble – along with their passengers.

“We will be working with the management staff at Stephenson’s to ensure that the incident is fully investigated and appropriate action is taken."

The bus company apologised to the children and their families for the "unfortunate incident" and said the driver would be interviewed at the earliest opportunity.

Stephensons of Easingwold said the company was conducting a detailed investigation with the council and the school involved.

In a statement, the company said on Tuesday: "This morning there has been an incident involving a school bus transporting children to Easingwold School, where the bus has unfortunately entered a flooded area and become partially submerged as a result.

"We express our sincere apologies to the children who were on the service this morning as well as to their families for this unfortunate incident.

"We are very pleased to report that there were no serious injuries as a result of this incident and everyone was successfully rescued from the bus unharmed."

Stephensons said the company would issue a further statement once investigations had been completed.

North Yorkshire Police’s Collision Investigations Unit were sent to the scene, they tweeted: “NYPFCIU @NYPFCIU: We have been called to video the route this driver took through the road closed signs!”

A spokesperson for North Yorkshire Police said they were currently trying to establish what had happened and nobody had been charged in connection with the incident.

She said: “We requested the bus to be moved and they’re now trying to determine what happened. There’s no criminal investigation. They’re just trying to establish how it got there and how it came to be submerged.”

• If you have any photos or video from the scene or were on the bus email newsdesk@nne.co.uk