Heroic teenagers helped evacuate fellow pupils after their school bus burst into flames - seconds before it was completely destroyed by fire.
Intense heat melted the morning scholars’ service leaving around 50 children scared, shaken and stranded in rural County Durham.
The fireball erupted after Teesdale School students reported seeing white smoke coming from the back of the bus on the B6278 between Barnard Castle and Eggleston at 8.30am on Tuesday.
“We then smelled this weird smell and all of a sudden there was loads of smoke coming from the back of the seats.
“We jumped up and told everyone to come off the bus. We went around making sure everyone was off.
“About 30 seconds later it went up in flames.”
Tyler, who is in year ten, said members of the public stopped their cars to help get pupils, who were filming the fire, back to a safe distance.
He added: “For a minute it was small flame at the back but then it broke out and went all through the bus.
“The tyres popped straight away, there was a few bangs, the radiator had gone so there was loads of oil leaking all over the floor.
“The windows were all melted and smashing. The bus was melted to the floor.”
Some year 11 students were late for a design technology GCSE exam at after the rush hour drama.
Tyler said: “The lads who were with me must have been all over the place going into their exam after what happened with the bus.
“We did not expect this to happen on a normal day going to school.”
She said: “I don’t think they will be getting those back.”
She said the bus was still moving when it started filling with smoke and pupils started filing towards the door.
She added, pupils stood by the roadside were ushered back by adults who stopped their cars to help keep them safe.
The girl said: “We could hear ‘bangs’, it sounded like gunshots were coming from it.
“Everyone got scared and moved away and then there was big black clouds of thick billowing smoke everywhere.
“The windows just imploded. At one point there was a massive explosion. It was like there was a grenade going off in the bus.
“At the time I was in shock and was shaking, it was really scary.”
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No-one was injured but emergency services were called and police called the road while firefighters tackled the flames.
Mark Hodgson, director of Hodgson's Coach Operators, which runs the service, said: "I would like to express my gratitude to the students on board for their quick actions in following the evacuation instructions.
"We would also like to pass our thanks to County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue service, along with Durham Constabulary, for their efforts at the scene and Teesdale School and Sixth Form for their support offered to students on their arrival at school on the replacement coach.
"The cause of the fire has not been determined, a full investigation is ongoing at this time and we will assist the fire service with their investigation."
A spokesperson for North East Learning Trust, which operates Teesdale School and Sixth Form in Barnard Castle, said: “We can confirm that a number of our students were travelling on the bus on their way to school this morning.
"Thankfully all students were safely evacuated from the bus and were kept out of harm’s way until the fire service arrived.
“They continued their journey to school where all arrived safely and parents were informed of the incident.”
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