0:00:02 > 0:00:05A close call - a moment of danger when life can hang in the balance...
0:00:05 > 0:00:06I could die here. This is really serious.
0:00:08 > 0:00:11..a split second where the outcome could go either way...
0:00:11 > 0:00:15- Call 999 now.- ..the difference between disaster and survival.
0:00:15 > 0:00:18You could see it on the faces of the crew how life-threatening this was.
0:00:18 > 0:00:22Why would you need to swim? Apparently, they were supposed to still be on a boat.
0:00:22 > 0:00:25These are people that have been there and lived to tell the tale.
0:00:25 > 0:00:26I thought she had died.
0:00:26 > 0:00:29It's a day they'll never forget.
0:00:29 > 0:00:31The day they had a close call.
0:00:47 > 0:00:48Today on Close Calls...
0:00:49 > 0:00:55..an amateur racing driver on a qualifying lap takes a corner at more than 100mph.
0:00:56 > 0:00:59His brakes fail, the car somersaults.
0:00:59 > 0:01:03He's left hanging out of the window, his head inches from the ground.
0:01:03 > 0:01:08It happened really quickly. You just saw gravel and car, gravel, car.
0:01:08 > 0:01:12Minutes later, the driver's wife arrives to watch him race.
0:01:12 > 0:01:16I walked down and I saw his car. It was awful.
0:01:18 > 0:01:21And a baby is desperately ill.
0:01:21 > 0:01:25Her mum makes a distressing call to the emergency services.
0:01:31 > 0:01:36Seven-month-old Sophia and her family need urgent help now.
0:01:42 > 0:01:48Also today, passengers on a moving bus realise the driver isn't on board.
0:01:48 > 0:01:51It was gradually getting faster as it was going along,
0:01:51 > 0:01:55and the driver wasn't fast enough to actually get back on through the door.
0:02:04 > 0:02:07A racetrack near Swanley, Kent.
0:02:07 > 0:02:09A driver spins out of control,
0:02:09 > 0:02:13smashing into the fence separating the cars from the crowd.
0:02:13 > 0:02:18Shots taken by a track-side photographer show the driver's head just inches
0:02:18 > 0:02:21from the ground as the car somersaults.
0:02:21 > 0:02:24It begins to disintegrate with bits of bonnet,
0:02:24 > 0:02:28bumpers and exhaust flying off in all directions,
0:02:28 > 0:02:30leaving the driver helpless.
0:02:38 > 0:02:42Printing business owner Andrew is also a part-time racing driver.
0:02:42 > 0:02:47I really love the racing because it's not just going out there and seeing
0:02:47 > 0:02:49how fast you can be. Everyone is on the same power,
0:02:49 > 0:02:51everyone's got the same brakes, same weight.
0:02:51 > 0:02:55It's more about driver ability rather than who's got the biggest engine,
0:02:55 > 0:02:57which I think it... Makes it more interesting to watch and
0:02:57 > 0:02:59participate in.
0:03:00 > 0:03:04He's only been racing for a couple of years, but he's already tasted success.
0:03:04 > 0:03:06I had a podium,
0:03:06 > 0:03:08got third place and I got driver of the weekend as well,
0:03:08 > 0:03:10so that was good progress.
0:03:10 > 0:03:15However, Andrew hasn't always been so keen to get behind the wheel.
0:03:15 > 0:03:20It wasn't until he started dating school sweetheart Sarah that he found the need for a car.
0:03:20 > 0:03:22I think she just wanted a boyfriend that drove.
0:03:22 > 0:03:26I was interested in a boyfriend that could take me out on dates,
0:03:26 > 0:03:28to the cinema, bowling.
0:03:28 > 0:03:31She sort of persuaded me into getting some driving lessons
0:03:31 > 0:03:32and, yeah, it went from there.
0:03:32 > 0:03:37Passed my driving test and realised I really do love driving.
0:03:37 > 0:03:39He reckons it's one of the best decisions ever.
0:03:39 > 0:03:43Sarah is now his wife and they have four young children.
0:03:43 > 0:03:46He's an amazing husband, he's very supportive.
0:03:46 > 0:03:48He takes very good care of us all.
0:03:48 > 0:03:50He's a great dad, yeah.
0:03:50 > 0:03:52We're a happy little family, I'd say.
0:03:54 > 0:03:57It's a sunny summer's day and Andrew is competing in
0:03:57 > 0:03:58his silver Alfa Romeo.
0:04:01 > 0:04:05At 9am, he sets off around the circuit for a few practice laps.
0:04:05 > 0:04:06The car felt fine.
0:04:06 > 0:04:10Managed to get my lap times down a bit more, which was good.
0:04:10 > 0:04:14Sarah and the children are planning to come and see the race later in
0:04:14 > 0:04:16- the afternoon.- I got up quite early.
0:04:16 > 0:04:18Andrew headed off before us.
0:04:18 > 0:04:21The kids and I headed off in the car and we got stuck in traffic for about
0:04:21 > 0:04:2345 minutes to an hour.
0:04:25 > 0:04:27While Sarah sits in a traffic jam,
0:04:27 > 0:04:32Andrew's flying round the circuit on his qualifying lap.
0:04:32 > 0:04:37It's whoever goes fastest, and then it goes from pole all the way down to last place, basically.
0:04:38 > 0:04:44Documenting the various different races today is professional photographer Patrick Cranham.
0:04:44 > 0:04:46He's been a motor racing fan since he was a child,
0:04:46 > 0:04:50and now combines his passion with his job.
0:04:50 > 0:04:53I primarily take pictures of motorsport,
0:04:53 > 0:04:57specialising in the British touring cars but also covering other events.
0:04:57 > 0:05:00Patrick is already snapping away as Andrew records
0:05:00 > 0:05:03some pretty decent times out on the track.
0:05:03 > 0:05:06Everything was going smoothly. The car felt great.
0:05:08 > 0:05:12But then, on his seventh lap, travelling at around 100mph,
0:05:12 > 0:05:14he is about to hit a bend.
0:05:14 > 0:05:18He starts to brake, but there's a problem.
0:05:18 > 0:05:20When I broke, I literally had no brakes whatsoever.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25The feeling, to best describe it, I would say...
0:05:25 > 0:05:30It's like someone took my brake pads out and put ice in there.
0:05:30 > 0:05:34So I still had pressure on the brake pedal, but nothing was happening.
0:05:34 > 0:05:36It just kept going.
0:05:36 > 0:05:40He clips another racer, sending his own car into a violent roll.
0:05:43 > 0:05:45A spectator captures it on his phone.
0:05:52 > 0:05:56The first roll, it just seemed to go into slow motion because I think
0:05:56 > 0:06:01I was going so fast that it took a long time to complete the first roll.
0:06:01 > 0:06:06And I just remember saying to myself, "OK, so we're going upside down now."
0:06:06 > 0:06:10Photographer Patrick is positioned on the first corner of the circuit.
0:06:10 > 0:06:13Andrew's car is right in his viewfinder.
0:06:13 > 0:06:16He captures this spectacular series of stills.
0:06:18 > 0:06:22Because of the violent impact of the crash, it actually happened
0:06:22 > 0:06:26really quickly, because as soon as he hit the gravel you just saw gravel and car,
0:06:26 > 0:06:27gravel, car.
0:06:30 > 0:06:33The car kept rolling and I kept thinking to myself, you know,
0:06:33 > 0:06:35"It's going to come to a stop eventually."
0:06:35 > 0:06:38But it doesn't. It keeps spinning.
0:06:38 > 0:06:41After about three rolls, I was saying to myself, "OK,
0:06:41 > 0:06:45"I'd like this to stop rolling now," cos it just seemed to go on forever.
0:06:45 > 0:06:49In the driver's seat, Andrew is encased in a safety roll cage which should
0:06:49 > 0:06:52protect him. But something goes wrong.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55My seat caved in to the right,
0:06:55 > 0:06:57which actually pushed my head towards the window.
0:07:00 > 0:07:05Patrick's shots show the moment Andrew's head is forced out of the smashed window.
0:07:07 > 0:07:08The car is still rolling.
0:07:08 > 0:07:12His head is just centimetres from being crushed.
0:07:14 > 0:07:19The car begins to disintegrate, then pirouettes.
0:07:19 > 0:07:23The car has nosedived and then has come around and then I've gone upside down
0:07:23 > 0:07:24into the side netting.
0:07:25 > 0:07:30As he hits the barrier, Andrew's head is still hang out of the window.
0:07:30 > 0:07:35Horrified spectators can only watch an as the car smashes into
0:07:35 > 0:07:38the tyre wall, catapulting into the air.
0:07:38 > 0:07:42Then its momentum is slowed by the 20-foot-high reinforced safety fence.
0:07:45 > 0:07:48The car drops to the ground.
0:07:49 > 0:07:51Luckily, I landed flat rather than upside down.
0:07:51 > 0:07:55- That was handy.- Smoke billows from the engine.
0:07:55 > 0:07:59The crowd look on, desperately hoping to see signs of life.
0:08:03 > 0:08:07Marshals rush over to the car as an ambulance and medic arrive.
0:08:09 > 0:08:12But there's still no sign of movement from Andrew.
0:08:12 > 0:08:16It's natural after seeing a crash of that magnitude that the driver isn't
0:08:16 > 0:08:20going to walk away, and I was waiting to see if Andrew got out the car.
0:08:23 > 0:08:26Suddenly, a figure emerges from the tangled wreckage.
0:08:28 > 0:08:30It's Andrew.
0:08:33 > 0:08:34He's survived.
0:08:35 > 0:08:38Spectators applaud as he walks away.
0:08:39 > 0:08:42First thing, just hearing the crowd cheering, and that's
0:08:42 > 0:08:45obviously a bit uplifting especially after this, so I did a little
0:08:45 > 0:08:47fist pump in the air.
0:08:47 > 0:08:50Photographer Patrick is amazed.
0:08:50 > 0:08:53Definitely did not think he would just be able to walk away.
0:08:53 > 0:08:58When the paramedics came over, I at least expected him to be stretchered away.
0:08:58 > 0:09:02Andrew's immediately taken by ambulance to the on-site medical centre,
0:09:02 > 0:09:06checked over by paramedics and given the all-clear.
0:09:06 > 0:09:09His most serious injury is a sprained ankle.
0:09:18 > 0:09:20The crash was such a big crash,
0:09:20 > 0:09:25I think everyone was shocked to see that I've managed to just get out the car
0:09:25 > 0:09:26and walk away, basically.
0:09:28 > 0:09:31Sarah and the children arrive at the track looking forward to watching
0:09:31 > 0:09:38Andrew race. But the first thing they see is the mangled wreck of his Alfa Romeo.
0:09:39 > 0:09:45I walked down and I saw his car on the back of his trailer and I was absolutely gobsmacked.
0:09:45 > 0:09:47The car was in an awful...
0:09:47 > 0:09:48I couldn't have imagined...
0:09:48 > 0:09:51It was awful.
0:09:51 > 0:09:55After the crash, everything just seemed quite fuzzy, like, still,
0:09:55 > 0:09:57I couldn't really take it in.
0:09:57 > 0:09:59I felt quite emotional. I couldn't speak at the time.
0:10:01 > 0:10:05Sarah looks frantically around for her husband, then sees him limping
0:10:05 > 0:10:08- towards her.- He was trying to hold it together.
0:10:08 > 0:10:10He looked very emotional.
0:10:10 > 0:10:13I just looked at him and said, "I'm just so glad that we've enjoyed our
0:10:13 > 0:10:18"life as much as we have because I could have become a widow,
0:10:18 > 0:10:20"with four young children."
0:10:21 > 0:10:27When Patrick examines his images, he realises what an extraordinary escape Andrew has had.
0:10:27 > 0:10:31There's one picture in particular where his head is very close to the ground.
0:10:33 > 0:10:35Had his head actually scraped the ground,
0:10:35 > 0:10:38it's not worth thinking about what could have happened.
0:10:38 > 0:10:41Although Andrew walked away from the horrendous crash,
0:10:41 > 0:10:43it still had an impact on the family.
0:10:43 > 0:10:47Andrew seems to enjoy the children more, the special little moments.
0:10:47 > 0:10:50We're making the most of those.
0:10:50 > 0:10:52Because you never know when it's going to end.
0:10:56 > 0:11:00But racing is part of the couple's life and Andrew's now back behind
0:11:00 > 0:11:03the wheel with Sarah's full support.
0:11:03 > 0:11:07However, he hasn't forgotten what a close call he had that day.
0:11:07 > 0:11:11If the car had actually rolled the other way, I think there would have been more of a
0:11:11 > 0:11:13chance of my head contacting the floor.
0:11:13 > 0:11:17There is definitely someone upstairs watching me.
0:11:17 > 0:11:20It could have definitely went a different way that day.
0:11:27 > 0:11:32Coming up, a driver leaps from her car when she spots a runaway bus.
0:11:32 > 0:11:35I ran along the side of the bus, stopping the traffic,
0:11:35 > 0:11:37and my heart was pounding.
0:11:37 > 0:11:38I just couldn't believe it.
0:11:46 > 0:11:52Speke, Liverpool. A 999 call has just come through to the emergency services.
0:11:52 > 0:11:54It's a mother in panic.
0:12:01 > 0:12:05Seven-month-old Sophia is slipping in and out of consciousness,
0:12:05 > 0:12:08and a purple rash is developing on her body.
0:12:14 > 0:12:16An ambulance is racing to the scene,
0:12:16 > 0:12:20but baby Sophia's condition is deteriorating.
0:12:20 > 0:12:22She started to close her eyes.
0:12:22 > 0:12:25She was getting very floppy and that was it then.
0:12:25 > 0:12:27The ambulance can't come quick enough.
0:12:35 > 0:12:39Full-time mum Sarah and her partner Andy dote on baby daughter Sophia.
0:12:43 > 0:12:46'I can still remember the feeling when I first had her.'
0:12:46 > 0:12:51They say there's an overwhelming rush of love and it's just so hard to describe.
0:12:51 > 0:12:55The minute I had her, it was like everything fell into place.
0:12:56 > 0:12:58She's my whole world. She's my whole life.
0:12:58 > 0:13:01Yay!
0:13:01 > 0:13:04'She's really bubbly. Very, very lively.'
0:13:04 > 0:13:06The two of us are just devoted to her.
0:13:06 > 0:13:07We'd do anything for her.
0:13:10 > 0:13:15But one day, when their baby girl suddenly faces a life and death situation,
0:13:15 > 0:13:17both parents feel helpless to save her.
0:13:19 > 0:13:23It's a Saturday morning in December, a couple of weeks before Christmas.
0:13:23 > 0:13:25The family has just woken up.
0:13:25 > 0:13:28Mum Sarah leans over to check on her daughter.
0:13:30 > 0:13:32She didn't smile so straightaway I was like, "OK,
0:13:32 > 0:13:34"I know that she is not well."
0:13:34 > 0:13:36I felt her. She had a temperature.
0:13:36 > 0:13:40She was making a raspy breathing noise.
0:13:41 > 0:13:45Thinking Sophia is simply suffering from a heavy cold,
0:13:45 > 0:13:50Sarah carries on as normal, but her concern grows when she starts to change
0:13:50 > 0:13:51her daughter's clothes.
0:13:53 > 0:13:57She had a red little pinprick rash all over her legs - could be a heat rash,
0:13:57 > 0:13:58could be a sweat rash.
0:13:58 > 0:14:02The young mum continues to undress her baby, then she spots something
0:14:02 > 0:14:05potentially much more sinister.
0:14:05 > 0:14:07I just heard a scream.
0:14:07 > 0:14:11I went running back into the bedroom and she had the baby's babygrow off
0:14:11 > 0:14:14and you could just see the baby's stomach
0:14:14 > 0:14:18and she had a really big spot like a scab in the middle of her belly.
0:14:20 > 0:14:22She had a purple blotch on her chest.
0:14:22 > 0:14:26There was only one or two blotches, but there was this one big purple one.
0:14:27 > 0:14:30Sophia is showing all the signs of meningitis,
0:14:30 > 0:14:32a potentially fatal disease.
0:14:32 > 0:14:36Sarah grabs her phone and dials 999.
0:14:37 > 0:14:39Call handler Natalie answers.
0:14:52 > 0:14:56As Natalie dispatches an ambulance, the young mum at the other end of
0:14:56 > 0:14:58the phone is in anguish.
0:15:03 > 0:15:08Natalie needs a clear idea of Sophia's symptoms so she can advise
0:15:08 > 0:15:09Sarah on what to do.
0:15:26 > 0:15:28Sophia's condition is clearly getting worse.
0:15:43 > 0:15:45Sarah fears for her daughter's life.
0:15:58 > 0:16:03I kept saying her name, I kept pulling on her ear lobes, tickling her nose,
0:16:03 > 0:16:07just little things like that, but she wasn't responding and I thought
0:16:07 > 0:16:10if I'm being told to keep her awake it's going to be serious if she goes
0:16:10 > 0:16:13to sleep in case she never woke up again.
0:16:43 > 0:16:45Sophia is fighting for her life.
0:16:46 > 0:16:49The three of us were just in a ball, hugging on the bed, saying,
0:16:49 > 0:16:51"Don't die, Sophia," and kissing her, and...
0:16:51 > 0:16:54She was just making the odd little groan and was lifeless.
0:16:54 > 0:16:57Her eyes were rolling in head and stuff.
0:16:57 > 0:16:59She is becoming unresponsive.
0:17:00 > 0:17:03It's another sign she could be suffering from meningitis,
0:17:03 > 0:17:07a deadly infection affecting the membranes surrounding the brain and
0:17:07 > 0:17:09spinal cord. Although rare,
0:17:09 > 0:17:14it can claim lives within 24 hours and needs emergency attention.
0:17:14 > 0:17:19Every minute is vital and it takes just six for the ambulance to arrive.
0:17:19 > 0:17:22One of those on board is paramedic Frank Cousins.
0:17:23 > 0:17:28We could hear the baby's mum screaming and it's a scream that we've heard
0:17:28 > 0:17:30so many times before and
0:17:30 > 0:17:34it's not a good scream. It's not a nice scream.
0:17:35 > 0:17:40Andy, baby Sophia's dad, frantically directs the team upstairs.
0:17:40 > 0:17:43Sarah is still on the phone to the call handler.
0:17:47 > 0:17:49As soon as the paramedics see Sophia,
0:17:49 > 0:17:53they recognise all the signs of meningitis.
0:17:53 > 0:17:57The mum was holding the baby and the baby was very, very limp.
0:17:57 > 0:17:59Initially, we thought the worst.
0:17:59 > 0:18:02To be honest with you, she was that bad.
0:18:02 > 0:18:03She was only minutes away from dying.
0:18:05 > 0:18:09Frank and his colleague rush Sophia to the ambulance just as
0:18:09 > 0:18:11rapid response paramedic Rob McKnight arrives.
0:18:13 > 0:18:17When you see a limp, lifeless body, obviously you fear the worst.
0:18:17 > 0:18:21All the observations that we did, none of them were in the normal range.
0:18:21 > 0:18:24Her respiratory rate was through the roof, her oxygen levels were low,
0:18:24 > 0:18:25her blood pressure was really low,
0:18:25 > 0:18:29her temperature was really high, her blood sugars were really low...
0:18:29 > 0:18:32Everything that could be wrong was wrong with her.
0:18:32 > 0:18:38Sophia desperately needs specialist treatment. Barely clinging to life,
0:18:38 > 0:18:40she's taken to Alder Hey Children's Hospital.
0:18:40 > 0:18:43I was hysterical and I just remember asking them,
0:18:43 > 0:18:45"Is she going to be OK?
0:18:45 > 0:18:47"Please, please. She needs to be OK."
0:18:47 > 0:18:50They just kept saying, "We're doing everything we can, but she is very,
0:18:50 > 0:18:52"very poorly."
0:18:54 > 0:18:57A specialist paediatric team is waiting and rush Sophia to
0:18:57 > 0:19:00emergency resuscitation.
0:19:00 > 0:19:01It was like,
0:19:01 > 0:19:04"Oh, my God, this is really, really serious."
0:19:04 > 0:19:09And I carried her into the hospital and I lie her on the bed
0:19:09 > 0:19:13and then everyone just from everywhere just came running in the room.
0:19:13 > 0:19:15We honestly thought she was going to die.
0:19:17 > 0:19:22Sophia spends three long days on a ventilator in intensive care.
0:19:22 > 0:19:26Her anxious parents remain at her bedside throughout.
0:19:26 > 0:19:29Then on day four comes the news they've been praying for.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33Sophia is out of danger.
0:19:33 > 0:19:37This is the phone footage they take that day as their little girl
0:19:37 > 0:19:39demonstrates her extraordinary recovery.
0:19:40 > 0:19:46It's a Christmas miracle, and little Sophia is allowed home for the holiday.
0:19:46 > 0:19:51Just to sit in the living room with the baby... It was like, "Oh, thank God.
0:19:51 > 0:19:53"Thank you, God. Thank you, everyone.
0:19:53 > 0:19:55"We now know our little girl's home.
0:19:55 > 0:19:56"We know she's safe."
0:19:58 > 0:19:59Peek-a-boo!
0:19:59 > 0:20:04Sarah is convinced her daughter's survival is down to the emergency staff
0:20:04 > 0:20:05and paramedics.
0:20:05 > 0:20:08The couple go to thank them personally,
0:20:08 > 0:20:10taking baby Sophia with them.
0:20:10 > 0:20:13How do you say thank you to someone who saved your daughter's life?
0:20:13 > 0:20:16You can't. The words are meaningless.
0:20:16 > 0:20:18They see it as a job.
0:20:18 > 0:20:19It's much more than a job.
0:20:19 > 0:20:24They don't realise the impact they have on people's lives.
0:20:24 > 0:20:28And I'll always... I'll always tell Sophia about the three of them.
0:20:28 > 0:20:31They are... I've said before, they're angels in disguise.
0:20:42 > 0:20:45Lovely to see baby Sophia made a great recovery.
0:20:45 > 0:20:49Now, extraordinary and unexpected events can sometimes happen to people in
0:20:49 > 0:20:52the most ordinary moments of everyday life.
0:20:52 > 0:20:53Like catching a bus, for instance.
0:21:00 > 0:21:02Great Torrington, North Devon.
0:21:03 > 0:21:07A frantic woman runs alongside a moving bus.
0:21:07 > 0:21:11Passengers on the upper deck are beginning to panic.
0:21:11 > 0:21:15They've just realised there's no driver on board the bus,
0:21:15 > 0:21:19- and it's rolling downhill. - I thought, "Oh, my God."
0:21:19 > 0:21:22The bus driver's face, oh, it was terrible.
0:21:22 > 0:21:24The horror on his face.
0:21:36 > 0:21:4018-year-old Laura from Torrington has just started studying for her A-levels
0:21:40 > 0:21:42at a college in nearby Barnstaple.
0:21:43 > 0:21:47I really enjoy going to college. I study English language, accountancy,
0:21:47 > 0:21:50business and economics, and psychology.
0:21:51 > 0:21:53It's very different to school, I think.
0:21:53 > 0:21:56It's nice because you have a lot more control over, like,
0:21:56 > 0:22:00what you're doing and I do have a lot of friends there.
0:22:00 > 0:22:03She regularly travels to college by bus.
0:22:03 > 0:22:06It takes normally about half an hour to 40 minutes and, yeah,
0:22:06 > 0:22:08I take it every day there and back.
0:22:10 > 0:22:14The autumn term has just started and after a busy day studying,
0:22:14 > 0:22:18Laura is on her way back home on her usual route.
0:22:18 > 0:22:19I was looking forward to getting home.
0:22:19 > 0:22:25I was probably 25 minutes into my journey when the bus made a bang.
0:22:25 > 0:22:27There'd be about 10 or 15 people on the bus around me,
0:22:27 > 0:22:30and there would have been people upstairs as well.
0:22:30 > 0:22:32We thought maybe it could have been a tree or something.
0:22:32 > 0:22:34We didn't really think much of it.
0:22:34 > 0:22:35It happens all the time.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40But this time, it seems it's something more than that.
0:22:40 > 0:22:44The bus has struck the kerb quite hard, and at the next stop, where
0:22:44 > 0:22:48some passengers alight, the driver has trouble shutting the front doors.
0:22:48 > 0:22:50He gets off to investigate.
0:22:51 > 0:22:55Laura's sitting on the lower deck and watches as he attempts to fix
0:22:55 > 0:22:58- the problem.- He was climbing back on and off, like off his seat,
0:22:58 > 0:23:02trying to figure out how to shut the door again because obviously
0:23:02 > 0:23:05the bang had caused the door to stop working.
0:23:07 > 0:23:10While all this is going on, Louise, who lives locally,
0:23:10 > 0:23:13is in her car on her way to pick up her parents for a trip out.
0:23:14 > 0:23:18Her three-year-old grandson is strapped in the back, and they're just
0:23:18 > 0:23:20approaching the bus stop.
0:23:20 > 0:23:25He wanted to come for a ride and then I was just on the way up to my mum and dad's house,
0:23:25 > 0:23:28and I noticed the car in front stopped suddenly and the man
0:23:28 > 0:23:32- jumped out. - Louise is forced to brake.
0:23:32 > 0:23:37I looked across and saw the bus no driver in the bus.
0:23:37 > 0:23:41That's because he's making a call to his depot to report the problem.
0:23:41 > 0:23:47But crucially, he's doing it from the roadside, not on the bus.
0:23:47 > 0:23:50Whilst he is distracted, the bus begins to move.
0:23:52 > 0:23:55The bus just started rolling down the road, with the bus driver off.
0:23:55 > 0:23:57I didn't really know what to do.
0:23:57 > 0:24:02I kind of started panicking and it took a moment to really realise what was actually happening.
0:24:02 > 0:24:04But someone else has realised straightaway.
0:24:04 > 0:24:08The man from the first car in front of me ran out,
0:24:08 > 0:24:12pushing the bus from the front, trying to stop it.
0:24:12 > 0:24:15But it's an impossible task.
0:24:15 > 0:24:18The bus is at the top of a hill, and it's rolling down.
0:24:20 > 0:24:23The bus driver noticed the bus was running along, so he started
0:24:23 > 0:24:26running alongside, holding onto the door,
0:24:26 > 0:24:30and he was like shouting in, "Stop the bus, stop the bus."
0:24:30 > 0:24:33Leaving her little grandson in the back of the car,
0:24:33 > 0:24:34Louise jumps out to help.
0:24:35 > 0:24:41I noticed the car coming behind me and so I got out and ran across, and was like, "Whoa, stop, stop."
0:24:41 > 0:24:44And then the bus still carried on coming forward.
0:24:44 > 0:24:45I thought, "Oh, my God."
0:24:46 > 0:24:51On the upstairs deck, the passengers have only just realised what's happening.
0:24:51 > 0:24:54One starts to film with a mobile phone.
0:24:54 > 0:24:56That's Louise in the white top.
0:24:56 > 0:25:00I ran alongside the bus, stopping the traffic and looking on the pavement.
0:25:00 > 0:25:03There was no-one coming along the road, so that was good.
0:25:03 > 0:25:06My heart was pounding. I just couldn't believe it.
0:25:06 > 0:25:08Neither can Laura.
0:25:08 > 0:25:11It was gradually getting faster as it was going along and, like,
0:25:11 > 0:25:15the bus driver wasn't fast enough to actually get back on through the door.
0:25:15 > 0:25:16He was holding on to the sides.
0:25:16 > 0:25:18He was doing everything,
0:25:18 > 0:25:22everything possible to stop that bus, but obviously you'd never be able to stop
0:25:22 > 0:25:24a double-decker. The horror on his face.
0:25:24 > 0:25:26I felt so sorry for him.
0:25:26 > 0:25:30On the lower deck, one passenger tries to take action.
0:25:30 > 0:25:34There was this girl and she got up and she started going towards where
0:25:34 > 0:25:39the driver should have been, and I said to her, "Pull up the brake!
0:25:39 > 0:25:41"Pull up the handbrake!"
0:25:41 > 0:25:43But she didn't get there. It was too quick.
0:25:43 > 0:25:48The bus has picked up speed and is now veering towards a bungalow at the bottom
0:25:48 > 0:25:51of the hill, surrounded by a wall and bushes.
0:25:51 > 0:25:55Everyone started, like, panicking and we realised, so I just kind of
0:25:55 > 0:25:57held onto the seat in front and braced myself.
0:26:03 > 0:26:05As the bus hit the wall,
0:26:05 > 0:26:09it was like a big bang, but it was like it went on for a bit because
0:26:09 > 0:26:12obviously the bus started going along the wall.
0:26:16 > 0:26:19Thankfully, the impact stops the bus.
0:26:19 > 0:26:24The driver of the first car in front of me, he said he thought
0:26:24 > 0:26:28the bus driver had got squashed into the wall so I quickly ran round.
0:26:28 > 0:26:32But the driver, although shaken, is unhurt.
0:26:32 > 0:26:35And then I noticed the engine was still running so I was like,
0:26:35 > 0:26:38"Please, can someone go and turn the bus off,
0:26:38 > 0:26:39"the engine off?"
0:26:39 > 0:26:42And I think the driver went in and turned it off.
0:26:42 > 0:26:46The panic-stricken passengers are still trapped on the bus.
0:26:46 > 0:26:53The man that lived in the house came out and he helped. He, like, moved the bushes away
0:26:53 > 0:26:57and we had someone on each side helping us get out from the rubble.
0:26:58 > 0:27:01These pictures, taken just after the passengers got off,
0:27:01 > 0:27:04show the bus embedded in the demolished wall,
0:27:04 > 0:27:07one of the tyres pulled right off the rim.
0:27:09 > 0:27:13With everyone safe, Louise rushes off to pick up her parents and Laura
0:27:13 > 0:27:16decides to walk the rest of the way home.
0:27:16 > 0:27:20I was glad when I got home and met my mum and she was quite worried because
0:27:20 > 0:27:24I'd message her beforehand and she was like, "Oh, are you OK?
0:27:24 > 0:27:25"Are you hurt?"
0:27:25 > 0:27:29Incredibly, no-one on board or in the street was injured.
0:27:34 > 0:27:37If there was anyone walking along the road or crossing the street...
0:27:37 > 0:27:40I mean, they could've easily got hit because there was no-one to stop the bus.
0:27:42 > 0:27:45If it had carried on and the kids were coming out of school,
0:27:45 > 0:27:48or if it had gone on the pavement onto someone else,
0:27:48 > 0:27:49it could've been a lot worse.
0:27:49 > 0:27:52But it's lucky.
0:28:03 > 0:28:05That's it for Close Calls today.
0:28:05 > 0:28:07Amazing stories. See you next time.