‘They adored their boys’: Young kids orphaned by Hunter Valley bus crash
Young children have been left without parents as the victims of Sunday night's wedding bus crash have been revealed.
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The Hunter Valley bus crash that claimed 10 lives and left 25 more people hospitalised has spread tragedy farther than just the wedding guests that day.
NSW parents Andrew and Lynan Scott lost their lives on Sunday when it’s understood the private bus they were riding took the curve on a roundabout too quickly and flipped, violently throwing the passengers from their seats.
The couple leaves behind two little boys whom friends and family said they “adored”.
Tributes have flowed in from the community remembering the Scotts and the other victims of the crash.
“The football community is mourning the loss of former player Andrew Scott and wife Lynan who passed away in the Hunter Valley this week,” Redland-Victoria Point Sharks Football Club wrote on Facebook, sharing a photo of Andrew playing.
“He was a terrific member of our community both on and off the field and was characterised by his big heart and willingness to help anyone.”
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First Hunter Valley bus crash victims identified
Eight of the 10 deceased victims of the crash whose families have been notified by NSW Police have been publicly identified.
In addition to the Scotts, the victims are Zachary Bray from Byron Bay, Angus Craig from Queensland, Darcy Bulman from Sydney, and Tori Cowburn and Rebecca Mullen, both from Singleton.
“I see there’s some speculation about the identity of those 10 persons — we cannot confirm the identity of those 10 victims,” NSW Police Acting Assistant Commissioner David Waddell said on Tuesday.
“We’ll work through the disaster victim identification process over the next few days. Our investigators, our family liaison officers, are speaking to the families and victims. We are in contact. That process will continue throughout the investigation and the court process.”
Driver's alleged boast just before Hunter Valley bus flipped
Just after 11:30pm on Sunday, the bus was transporting passengers from the Lovedale wedding of Mitchell Gaffney and Madeleine Edsell. It overturned on a roundabout on Wine Country Drive, near the Hunter Expressway off-ramp in Greta.
Allegations from witnesses were reported by The Daily Telegraph, saying that bus driver Brett Andrew Button was driving dangerously immediately before the accident.
Moments before he lost control of the vehicle, he allegedly said through the bus intercom, “If you think that was fast… watch this.”
Others allege that he told passengers to put on their seatbelts just before the bus flipped.
Mr Waddell alleged the bus driver was travelling too fast.
“He entered that roundabout driving in a manner that was inconsistent with the conditions,” he alleged to reporters on Tuesday morning.
“Obviously, the speed was too quick for him to negotiate that roundabout, causing the vehicle to fall onto its left side and cause those injuries.”
Button faces 11 charges over the tragic crash. He appeared before Cessnock Local Court on Tuesday and was released on bail.
The crash is the deadliest on Australian roads in more than 38 years.
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Originally published as ‘They adored their boys’: Young kids orphaned by Hunter Valley bus crash
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