Updated ,first published
One person is dead and at least two others are fighting for life after a bus rollover in north Queensland injured about 20 people.
Emergency services were called to the vehicle – which had 29 people on board – on the Bruce Highway at Gumlu just before 4pm.
Queensland police confirmed on Thursday night that one passenger had died from their injuries and have appealed for anyone who witnessed or has video of the crash to contact them.
“The Forensic Crash Unit is appealing for witnesses following a single-vehicle bus crash that has claimed the life of one passenger at Gumlu, north of Bowen, on Thursday 14 May,” police said in a statement.
The Queensland Ambulance Service said initially reported at least 20 people were injured in the crash, three of them critically. Fifteen people were in hospital just after 6pm.
The crash occurred near Rangemore Road and the Bruce Highway was closed in both directions.
The site is about 90 minutes south of Townsville by car.
Helicopters were flown in from Mackay and Townsville, with the first patients taken to hospital just after 5pm.
Passengers were taken to hospitals in Ayr, Bowen and Townsville.
The Bruce Highway has long been considered one of the most dangerous roads in Australia.
Stretching from Brisbane to Cairns, the highway is used by more than 100,000 vehicles every day, according to NRMA.
Of the 302 people killed on Queensland roads in 2024, 41 died on the Bruce Highway while another 7500 were hospitalised after driving on the road, according to data from the state’s Department of Transport and Main Roads.
More than 66 per cent of people believe there are not enough overtaking lanes on the highway while a third of respondents said they avoided travelling on the Bruce during family holidays, according to a 2024 NRMA survey.
In a bid to bolster driver safety, the federal government earmarked an extra $812 million for the second stage of upgrades to the Bruce Highway after delivering the budget on Tuesday.
This added to $758 million already delivered during stage one.
With AAP
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