Rangers bus crash: One fan dead and 18 injured in Ayrshire after coach overturns
‘My mother was on that bus, thankfully she and her friends got out of the emergency window by kicking it in,’ one person said
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One person has died and eighteen others have been hospitalised with injuries after a coach carrying Rangers FC fans overturned on a busy A road.
The vehicle ended up on its side on the A76 in west Ayrshire on Saturday afternoon.
Police Scotland confirmed in a statement that a 39-year-old man died in the accident, which took place near the Crossroads Roundabout.
“Eighteen people are receiving treatment in hospital, three of whom are in a serious condition,” said the statement.
“This includes seven men under 20 years of age, three men and three women aged between 30 and 59 and five men over 60.”
A total of 36 people, plus the driver, were on board at the time of the crash.
One passenger said the coach “swerved” at the roundabout and the bus landed on its side on a grass verge.
The coach was travelling to Ibrox Stadium, where Rangers were due to play Partick Thistle.
One person told the Mirror: “My mother was on that bus, thankfully she and her friends got out of the emergency window by kicking it in.
“They’re all currently at Crosshouse hospital being treated for their wounds.”
The road has been closed in both directions and a screen was erected around part of the damaged coach while crash scene investigators carry out inquiries.
Social media users were quick to express their support.
Inspector Darren Faulds said: “Inquiries are ongoing to establish the cause of the crash and anyone with any information is asked to call road policing officers at Irvine Police Office on 101.”
Rangers assistant manager Davie Weir said he had “only just heard” about the crash.
He said: “I’ve only just heard about it. Obviously there are things more important than football. Until we get all the details, I think it would be unwise to comment.
“But our thoughts are with the people involved, the families involved, and I’m sure the club will be very supportive in regards to anything they can do to help the situation.”
Ryan Rowe, from Darvel, east Ayrshire, was driving to work when he passed the crash scene.
He said: “It must have happened just five minutes before I got there.
“Within two minutes the fire service, ambulance and police all turned up. There were still people trapped inside. One man I spoke to was just sitting down and in tears and he was shaking. He said the bus had swerved.
“Another young man had cuts all over his arm and blood all the way down it. He was holding it in the air to try and stop the bleeding.
“Two or three windows on the bus had been smashed and when I was there paramedics were still trying to get people out of the other side that the bus was lying on.”
He said many of the passengers appeared to be in their teens or early twenties.
Additional reporting from Press Association
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