Hero stops bus
Published: October 24, 2004
Many who would have been hit or killed by either of this busses know they have been saved.
Some miracles, like not having something happen to you, happen to us all the time, I guess. We just never know and only ask “Why?!” when it is clear nothing happened.
Today I’ll be thankful for being alive.
An auto electrician became a hero yesterday after preventing a disaster by smashing his way on to a runaway bus as it careered down the Princes Highway.
It was one of two runaway bus incidents in Sydney yesterday, both of which narrowly avoided killing bystanders.
The other incident involved a Busways bus rolling 100m backwards down the city’s George St before hitting a car.
The Busways 51-seater bus created a 100m path of destruction down George St’s cinema strip at 2am after its driver went into McDonald’s to buy a coffee.
Eyewitnesses said the bus rolled backwards for about 30 seconds through one intersection, narrowly missing several cars and people.
An RTA spokeswoman yesterday said inspectors had found no mechanical problem with the bus, or its handbrake.
Busways Blacktown depot operations manager Maurice Hogan said this was the first accident the driver had been involved in after joining the company 17 months ago.
The driver returned a zero blood alcohol reading and has been stood down pending investigation.
In the second incident, shortly after 12.30pm, Andrew Christodoulou raced out of his Arncliffe workshop after hearing a loud bang to find a runaway bus ploughing along a footpath and knocking down power poles.
Seconds earlier, the Kingsgrove Bus and Coach vehicle had lost control and swerved on to the footpath near the Arncliffe Supa Centre, bringing down electricity lines and two power poles.
The impact shattered the windscreen of the bus, which was not carrying passengers.
The bus only slowed after colliding with a parked 4WD and a truck.
Mr Christodoulou and work colleague Harry Charitou raced out to find the male driver slumped on the front stairs of the bus with the engine still revving.
Mr Christodoulou grabbed a hammer and smashed his way through the bus door before jumping into the driver’s seat and applying the brakes.
The 54-year-old driver was in a stable condition in hospital yesterday.
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