Thursday, 16 February 2023

Bus catches fire on Christchurch motorway

    1. Canterbury
    2. Christchurch

    An eye-witness captured a photo of smoke rising from the bus. Photo: Supplied
    An eye-witness captured a photo of smoke rising from the bus. Photo: Supplied
    Fire crews were called after bus caught fire on the Christchurch Southern Motorway this morning.

    The blaze was “well alight” when firefighters arrived, said Fire and Emergency NZ shift manager Simon Lyford.

    Crews received a call that a bus was on fire on the motorway at 6.30am on Thursday.

    Two crews from Rolleston and Wigram responded, along with a tanker to fight the blaze.

    When they arrived, Lyford said firefighters were forced to close the Rolleston end of the motorway for a period while the fire was extinguished with hoses.

    The bus was empty at the time, save for the driver. Photo: Supplied
    The bus was empty at the time, save for the driver. Photo: Supplied
    No one was injured and only the bus driver was in the vehicle at the time of the blaze. Lyford confirmed the driver was fine.

    The fire was extinguished at 7.20am and the bus has been towed from the scene.

    Lyford said the motorway was fully open.