‘He did well’: Bus driver hailed a hero after golfers flee inferno

The driver responsible for evacuating 23 golfers after their Sunshine Coast bus began smoking and later erupted into flames near Kybong has been called a hero for his efforts. WATCH THE VIDEO

A Sunshine Coast bus company has called one of its drivers a hero after he successfully evacuated a group of golfers from a smoking bus on the Bruce Highway near Kybong on Tuesday morning.

The group of 23 golfers were on their way to a tournament in Gympie when smoke was seen coming from the back of the bus just after 8am on Tuesday morning.

Wests National Coaches manager Paul West said the driver immediately pulled over on the Bruce Highway, just south of the Traveston Puma Service Centre, and evacuated the coach.

A Wests National Coaches bus transporting 23 golfers to a bus tournament caught fire on Bruce Highway near Kybong. Photo: Clayton‘s Towing.

Within minutes, the vehicle was engulfed in flames.

“Everybody was told to get off straight away and so they were well clear,” Mr West said.

“(The driver) did his job properly; he did well.”

Mr West said it remained to be seen what caused the fire, but a Queensland Fire and Emergency Service spokesperson said it was reported the blaze began in the engine bay.

A woman was taken to Gympie Hospital after the coach she and 22 other golfers were travelling on burst into flames on the Bruce Highway near Kybong on Tuesday morning.

Police closed the Bruce Highway northbound as five fire crews battled the blaze wearing breathing apparatus until it was extinguished at 8.50am.

A Queensland Ambulance spokesman said all passengers were accounted for and unharmed, but one woman was taken to Gympie Hospital in a stable condition as a precaution.

They could not confirm the woman’s age or any injuries she sustained as a result of the fire.

Mr West said another Wests coach collected the remaining passengers within the hour to complete their trip into Gympie.

All 23 passengers were accounted for and unharmed after the blaze, with one woman taken to Gympie Hospital as a precaution. Photo: Scott Kovacevic

This is not the first time a West National Coach has gone up in flames, after 61 Maroochydore High students and four teachers had to be evacuated from a smoking bus in 2014.

One northbound lane on the Bruce Highway remains closed.