Driver trapped after school bus hits truck near Minyip in northwest Victoria

A Warracknabeal Special Developmental School bus has rolled after hitting a truck near the tiny town of Minyip, more than three hours northwest of Melbourne.

A group of school children have miraculously walked away without any serious injuries after their bus flipped in a collision with a truck in Victoria’s northwest, with locals raising concerns about the state of regional roads.

A school bus taking three students to Warracknabeal Special Developmental School collided with a B-double truck carrying hay about 8.30am on Thursday near Minyip — about 308km northwest of Melbourne.

One student sustained minor injuries while the bus driver — who had been trapped in the wreckage for more than an hour — was taken to The Alfred with serious injuries.

The truck driver was taken to Horsham hospital and was assisting police with inquiries.

A school bus and truck collided near Minyip about 8.30am on Thursday with several children inside. The bus driver was airlifted to The Alfred and the truck driver was taken to Horsham hospital. Picture: 7NEWS

A road closure at Church St, Minyip as emergency services investigate a crash involving a school bus and a truck Picture: Tim Cox

Mick Mayes, from Warracknabeal Tyrepower, said drivers were in “more danger” because of the state of the roads, seeing an influx of damage done to cars caused by issues like potholes.

“A lot of unnecessary repairs to vehicles,” he said.

“Cars with cracked rims, impact fractures in tyres from the potholes.

“The trucks, same thing — impact fractures in tyres.

“There’s a lot of places if there’s no one going the other way you’ve basically got to go over the white line to avoid potholes or get a wheel each side of the hole.

“But if you’ve got someone going the other way, you’ve got to hit the rough stuff.”

He said it felt as if more money was spent on roads in wealthier, metropolitan areas, leaving less for the regions.

“Hopefully they can do something about it soon,” he said.

“We’ve been bypassed to the job I’m on right now [because of the collision] and I’m driving a four-and-a-half tonne truck — we’re down to 60km/h in several places because the roads are that bad.”

Warracknabeal mechanic Scott Fagan said the roads in the area “have had it”.

“Keeping the vehicle on the road is half the battle — you’re trying to avoid all these potholes.”

A woman in Warracknabeal who drove to work about 20 minutes ahead of the bus said the road was foggy in the morning before the crash.

A Minyip local said people in town were “very concerned” when they heard about the incident.

“I was relieved to hear all the kids got out, but the road is still blocked and the bus driver was trapped for quite a while,” she said.

“Quite a few people have kids on the bus.

“One parent told me all the kids are doing okay, just a little bit rattled as you could expect.”

A Department of Education spokesman said support was available for Warracknabeal Special Developmental School students and staff.

“Wellbeing support is available to students and staff at Warracknabeal SDS, Warracknabeal Secondary College and Warracknabeal Primary School and all families have been informed of the accident,” he said.

“Our thoughts also go to the drivers of the bus and truck, both of whom were injured.”

Police are investigating the circumstances of the incident.

Originally published as Driver trapped after school bus hits truck near Minyip in northwest Victoria