Hunter Valley wedding bus crash: Victims named as driver is charged

The 10 wedding guests who died in the catastrophic Hunter Valley bus crash have been identified.

The group were among 35 passengers returning to their accommodation after spending Sunday at the wedding of Madeleine Edsell and Mitchell Gaffney at the picturesque Wandin Valley Estate.

But the coach rolled at a roundabout on Wine Country Drive near the Hunter Expressway off-ramp at Greta, in New South Wales.

Emergency services were called to the horror scene about 11.30pm, where they found 10 bodies in the mangled wreckage alongside 25 who were injured, of which one is in a critical condition.

As news filtered through to the wedding party about what had happened, the newlyweds reportedly asked to be taken to the scene of the crash to help. Police told them to stay away as the scene was so gruesome.

Of those tragically killed, seven were from nearby Singleton, the Daily Telegraph reports. 

They include married couple Andrew and Lynan Scott, Tori Cowburn and Rebecca Mullen, and mother and daughter Nadene and Kyah McBride. Kyah’s boyfriend Kane Symons is unaccounted for.

Angus Craig from Queensland and Zachary Bray from Byron Bay are also among those who perished, as is Darcy Bullman from Melbourne.

‘My nephew Zach Bray passed away in last night’s Cessnock bus crash,’ Mr Bray’s uncle wrote on social media.

‘All my friends and family (are) in shock at the loss of such a beautiful young man.’

The driver of the bus, Brett Andrew Button, 58, was taken to hospital for mandatory drug and alcohol testing which came back negative.

Button was later transferred to Cessnock Police Station where he was charged with 10 counts of dangerous driving occasioning death and one additional charge of negligent driving occasioning death.

Footage from a local service station captured the bus travelling north along the New England Highway with a vehicle following closely behind just moments before the crash.

The area was covered in a thick blanket of fog at the time of the crash. 

A neighbour of Button told Daily Mail Australia he has worked as a bus driver for about six years, having previously worked in sales at the Mazda showroom in Maitland.

Another neighbour, Sarat Babu Perala, described Button as a ‘good bloke who was always friendly’.

Mr Perala said Button could regularly be spotted tinkering on his cars, mowing the land and doing chores around the house. 

He said Button has a teenage daughter and a son around 10 and some adult children from a previous relationship.

Mr Perala said he was saddened to hear the news and hoped Button was doing ok.

Button was also described as a family man by another of his neighbours.

The bus spent the majority of Monday on its side as police conducted investigations.

It was then returned to an upright position with the help of a tow truck later in the afternoon. 

Daily Mail Australia confirmed on Monday that Brandon Stafford, a groomsmen who had travelled from Victoria for the wedding, was among the injured.

Mr Stafford flew up from Victoria to attend his longtime friend Mitchell Gaffney’s wedding.

A loved one wrote on social media that ‘Brando is ok, he has a broken jaw and been into surgery’. 

He is one of a total of eight Warrandyte Cricket Club players and five of their partners who are injured and being treated in hospital. 

Their emcee, local reporter Alex Tigani, is among the injured recovering at John Hunter Hospital.

He revealed the crash was like ‘a war scene’ and that he was covered in ‘other people’s blood’ after it rolled.

A family of three that comprise an older couple and their adult son, is also being treated for injuries in John Hunter Hospital.

All three are expected to survive their injuries.

Assistant Commissioner Tracy Chapman said earlier on Monday that there was ‘sufficient information’ for police to press charges on Button.

‘He’s been the driver of a motor vehicle collision where there have been fatal injuries and there will be charges pending,’ Assistant Commissioner Chapman said.

Sources sold The Age that while Button had not turned a positive result on drug and alcohol tests, they believe he was ‘driving erratically’ before the crash.

Ms Chapman said police thought the bus was travelling to Singleton, for accommodation – about 34 minutes away.

‘It’s a tragic set of circumstances. The number of family members, but broader community, who will be impacted by this, you couldn’t count,’ she said.

The couple were married out on the pontoon overlooking a lake as the sun shone down, before all the guests gathered for a group photo in the gardens. 

Photos from inside the reception show the newlyweds cutting into their cake as a live band plays in the background and Mr Tigani speaks to the crowd.

The bride arrived at the ceremony in a restored 1952 Beetle convertible, which her dad had been working on to have it ready in time for the wedding. 

She and Mr Gaffney held an intimate ‘first look’ before the ceremony, before jetting off in the convertible for further photos.

The couple’s celebrant described them as a ‘beautiful’ couple in a series of social media posts prior to the tragedy.

‘I’m so happy to have married them,’ she said.

A woman who worked at the function told Daily Mail Australia there were about 100 people at the wedding. 

‘It’s just horribly sad,’ she said. ‘For them to all be having so much fun last night then for this to happen.’ 

The woman, who lives locally but didn’t know the couple, visited the crash scene with loved ones on Monday to leave flowers. She said the tragedy would have a massive impact on the community. 

A local near the scene of the crash said six helicopters landed on a vacant block of land nearby and set up triage.

The company which runs the coach, Linq Bus Lines, has operated for over 30 years and all coaches are fully equipped with seat belts.

A spokesperson for the venue said they are ‘providing support to guests who need our help’ in the wake of the horror accident.

‘We are deeply saddened to hear of the bus crash overnight that claimed the lives of some of our guests,’ the spokesperson said.

‘Our heartfelt condolences go out to the family and friends of the victims and we are supporting them in any way we can.’

The venue has posted a sign on their front gate saying it will be shut ‘out of respect’ for those killed or injured during the tragedy. 

Police said 11 passengers initially had to be airlifted or taken by ambulance to hospital while 25 others were rushed to hospital with varying injuries following one of Australia’s deadliest road accidents in decades.

They were initially rushed to John Hunter Hospital, but many have now been flown to Sydney for further care. 

Some of the stable victims in hospitals across the state have since provided witness statements to investigators, who are still working to determine exactly what went wrong. 

NSW Premier Chris Minns said. ‘Today is a day to hug someone you love, and to remember how precious life is,’ he said.

Mr Albanese said: ‘The mental scars of this will not go away. They are there forever.

‘When the spotlight leaves the care doesn’t, for people who have witnessed this and for people who have experienced this tragedy firsthand.’

Mr Albanese said: ‘The mental scars of this will not go away. They are there forever.

‘When the spotlight leaves the care doesn’t, for people who have witnessed this and for people who have experienced this tragedy firsthand.’

It is believed to be one of the worst road accidents involving multiple fatalities in almost 30 years.

In 1994, a bus crash in Boondall, Queensland, resulted in the death of 12 people.

A year later, a crash between a semi-trailer truck and a bus on Melbourne Cup Day in Wangaratta in Victoria led to the deaths of ten people.

Road diversions and closures are still in place as emergency services continue to investigate the scene.

All northbound and southbound off-ramps from Hunter Expressway to Wine Country Drive remain closed.

Family and friends of anyone who may have been on board the bus are urged to contact Cessnock Police Station on 02 4991 0199.

Witnesses – or anyone with any information about the crash – are urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 to keep the line to Cessnock Police Station clear for concerned family members.