Joanne Mountney was at home in Old Bar on Tuesday afternoon when she received a text from her 12-year-old son, Johnathon: “Call me”.

The pair had an arrangement that Johnathon always text on his phone to save credit.

Ringing back immediately, Joanne could barely hear her son above the background noise.

“Hello, are you there?” she said.

Then came the terrifying words, “...bus accident ...Old Bar Road ...can you come now!” and the sound of her son bursting into tears.

Of course, Joanne left immediately, “bolted there” in her words, and arrived at the site of the accident – a collision between the Eggins school bus and a small sedan, about 100m or so from the highway roundabout.

“We were lucky to get there before they took him to hospital,” she said.

Johnathon was assessed by ambulance paramedics at the scene and taken to Manning Hospital as a precaution. Joanne said he had fallen off his seat during the collision and had a bump and a graze to his back. He had x-rays but was given the all clear and was back home by 7.30 that night.

Johnathon, who attends Taree High, was among 30 school children on the bus which was heading east to Old Bar when the accident happened, about 3.50pm.

Police say the car, driven by a 69-year-old man conducted a U-turn in front of the bus. The driver and three others were taken to hospital with minor injuries.

The bus was not equipped with seat belts.

Joanne is full of praise for the bus driver, Sean Wilkinson of Eggins Comfort Coaches.

“The driver responded so professionally. They were all pretty shaken up but he kept the kids calm and really made their best interests a priority.”

During the accident the bus crossed to the other side of the road into a muddy, grassy ditch and the door was jammed shut so the back window had to be smashed for an emergency exit.

Quick-thinking nearby residents provided a ladder and, with the driver, helped the children out.

“The ground was really slushy and there could have been more injuries if they had to jump.

“I just want to thank everyone involved and for looking after the kids so well. The emergency services were so quick as well.”

Joanne said she had contacted Eggins to say thankyou to the driver.

“Considering the circumstances it could have been a lot worse. It was an unlucky situation and I’m sure the driver would have been feeling lousy that night but he did such a great job.”