Bus crash rescuers who used van tools to free passengers say 'adrenaline kicked in'

Two men who were among the first on the scene of a bus crash that injured dozens said passengers were "crying and screaming" as passersby rushed to break them out.

Martyn Pope and Dean Hollands said adrenaline "kicked in" as they arrived to help, using tools from their van to take out a window and smash through the doors.

Nineteen people were injured, with six taken to hospital, after the X11 service crashed on the A484 near the Kidwelly roundabout in Carmarthenshire, on Tuesday afternoon.

No injuries were believed to be life-threatening, police said.

A woman whose 17-year-old son was injured on the bus said she was grateful for the kindness of strangers and thanked those who helped.

Pope and Hollands, who are both from the area and work in care homes locally, said they were driving not far behind the bus in their van, when they came around the corner and saw it in the field.

"We've got tools in the back of the van so we grabbed a couple of hammers and dashed down onto the field.

"People were crying and screaming, making a not very nice noise," he said.

He added: "When we saw the bus from the top it was rolled over and there's no seat belts on buses so people would have been thrown all over the place."

He said there was a "15-20ft drop" down to the field and emergency services were bringing lots of water as it was so hot.

Hollands said: "There was a lady on the floor and she was actually lying on the glass windows as the bus was on its side, so Martyn went to the front, I went to the back, pulled one old lady out and an old chap. Then me and Martyn took the doors out."

They said they also let out a man with a baby, as well as a dog.

"We started clearing the debris. Loads of people had been food shopping so there was food everywhere," Hollands said.

Both men praised the emergency services for their response, and later learned that an elderly lady they helped was the mother of one of their colleagues at the care home, who was badly injured.

Describing the types of injuries people had, Pope said there were "lots of cuts, head injuries, people with dislocations and a lot of shaken up people".

Sally-Ann Morgan Smith's 17-year-old son Connor was on the X11, travelling to meet friends in Swansea. She got a call from him at 13:50 telling her what had happened.

Morgan Smith described "the longest journey ever" to get to Connor, adding that "he might be 17, but he's still my baby."

Connor was sent to Glangwili Hospital in Carmarthen as his pulse was really high. Although shaken, Morgan Smith said he was now OK.

"He's got a bad knee, a bad arm and aching everywhere.

"He had his headphones on so he wasn't really paying attention much, but he could hear the screams through the rock music of his headphones.

"Then he hit the side and went down."

Morgan Smith said she was grateful for the kindness of strangers and wanted to thank those who were at the scene helping.

"There was a lady there who took them all water, the drinks ran out so Connor gave his drink to an old lady," she said.

She added she was "100% proud" of her son who activated the emergency exit straight after the crash.

Local farmer Jacko Thomas rents the field the bus crashed into, and said he counted himself "lucky" as he was due to mow there that day.

He said he helped ferry people away in his pickup.

"The bus was on its side and bodies everywhere, I was gobsmacked," he said, adding it was "quite scary" seeing the emergency services and injured people.

"People were laying on the floor everywhere," he said, adding he was "shocked" that it was not any worse.

Thomas and two others took "the walking wounded" to get help in their farm buggy.

"It was quite difficult with some because they were in quite some pain, there were two old ladies."

According to the farmer, the fire and rescue services said it was "a good thing we were there" to help move people, with the added pressure of the heat.