By 1news.co.nz
The driver of the bus carrying wedding guests that crashed in the picturesque Hunter Valley region of New South Wales has now left court after being granted bail.
Brett Andrew Button, 58, appeared in the Cessnock Local Court this morning following the crash late Sunday night that killed 10 people returning from a wedding.
He faces 10 counts of dangerous driving occasioning death – drive manner dangerous, and one count of negligent driving (occasioning death).
This afternoon he was greeted by a media scrum as he left the court. Button, wearing a black hoodie, looked down and didn’t respond to reporters.
“Do you have anything to say to the wedding guests who were in the bus?” a reporter asked.
AAP reports Button stayed silent in court today, with some survivors giving evidence of the driver’s prolonged unsafe behaviour and call to “fasten your seatbelts” moments before he hit the bend and the bus tipped.
NSW Police Traffic and Highway Patrol Commander, Acting Commissioner David Waddell said it’s believed speed was a factor, and the bus was operated “in a manner that was inconsistent with the conditions”.
“He lost control of that vehicle and it fell over onto its left side, onto a guardrail,” he said.
“Obviously, the speed was too quick for him to negotiate that roundabout, causing the vehicle to fall onto its left side and cause those injuries.”
The Australian claims this morning that passengers “screamed” at the driver to slow down on the journey.
It comes after The Daily Telegraph reports that Button allegedly told passengers over the coach’s intercom “if you think that was fast… watch this” moments before the crash.
Fourteen people remain in hospital, two of them are in intensive care.