Seven people seriously injured and 22 hurt after bus rolled off road in Whitsundays region

At least seven people are seriously injured after a coach rolled on one of Australia’s most dangerous roads, leaving one person trapped beneath the vehicle. Emergency services were called to the intersection of the Bruce Highway and Rangemore Road at Gumlu in the Whitsundays region at about 4pm on Thursday after reports of a crash involving a bus with 29 people on board. Two passengers are being treated for significant head injuries and multisystem trauma, while five others have serious injuries, and 22 more are being assessed. One person was trapped under the bus, according to the Queensland fire department. Eleven ambulances as well as two helicopters and a Royal Flying Doctor Service plane attended the scene. No other vehicles are believed to have been involved in the incident, with Queensland ambulance service confirming that three stable patients have left the scene. The road was closed in both directions. The Bruce Highway has long been considered one of the most dangerous roads in Australia. Stretching from Brisbane to Cairns, the highway is used by more than 100,000 vehicles every day, according to the NRMA. Of the 302 people killed on Queensland roads in 2024, 41 died on the Bruce Highway while another 7,500 were hospitalised after driving on the road, according to data from the state’s transport department. The stretch from the Sunshine Coast to Gympie is widely regarded as the most perilous part of the highway. …