A groom is fighting for his life after a minibus carrying him and his groomsmen rolled down a steep embankment on the way to a wedding in New South Wales’ Hunter Valley.
The crash occurred just after 10:30am on Thursday morning on Mount View Road, near Cessnock, when the vehicle reportedly rolled approximately 50 metres down an embankment, tumbling seven times before coming to a rest.
Six people were inside the minibus, which was travelling to a wedding venue in Mount View. Among them was the groom, who is now one of two men in critical condition.
NSW Ambulance Acting Superintendent Jake Broughton-Rouse said it took emergency crews 45 minutes to free one of the men trapped in the wreckage. That man, aged 57, suffered serious head injuries and was flown to John Hunter Hospital in critical condition.
Another 57-year-old man, also in critical condition, was airlifted with serious limb injuries. The remaining four passengers, who are believed to be members of the wedding party, were taken to hospital by road and are reported to be in a stable condition.
Superintendent Steve Laksa, Hunter Valley District Commander, described the crash as a “tragic situation that could have been worse”.
“They hadn’t even got to the wedding yet,” he said. “We’re very fortunate the injuries weren’t fatal.”
The cause of the crash remains under investigation by the NSW Police Crash Investigation Unit. Early indications suggest weather and road conditions may have contributed to the accident.
“It’s drizzling, it’s an unsealed dirt road – it could have been a combination of those factors,” Superintendent Laksa said.
The driver of the minibus will undergo routine drug and alcohol testing, but police say there is currently no indication that alcohol played a role in the crash. Mount View Road remains closed as investigations continue.
The incident has sent shockwaves through the community and stirred painful memories of the 2023 Hunter Valley wedding bus tragedy, where 10 guests were killed and 25 others injured when a coach overturned while returning from a wedding.
That crash, caused by a driver under the influence of prescription drugs, remains one of the worst road disasters in the region’s recent history.
Images: Nine News
