Australian coach operator under investigation

The operator of a coach which crashed in Australia, killing ten people and severely injuring nine others, is being investigated by police.

The Guardian newspaper reports that the Linq Busline coach carrying wedding guests fell on to its side at 11.30pm as the coach returned from the Hunter Valley area, north of Sydney. According to witnesses, driver Brett Button urged passengers to put on their seatbelts moments before the crash. Mr Button, 58, was arrested, charged with ten counts of dangerous driving occasioning death, and released on bail.

Now police have raided depots and issued defect notices for a number of vehicles. The coach involved in the accident appeared in photographs to be lying on its side but structurally intact. It is not known whether those killed and injured were wearing seatbelts.