A school bus fire has led to more than 30 children being evacuated on the NSW south coast.
Adam Dewberry from NSW Fire and Rescue said crews were called to the fire near Collins Street and Terralong Street in Kiama about 8.45am on Thursday.
He said 33 children were on the bus when the fire broke out and were safely evacuated along with the driver.
The bus was headed to Kiama Public School and Saints Peter and Paul Catholic School, where the children are students.
Mr Dewberry confirmed no injuries were reported and crews brought the fire under control within 20 minutes.
Replacement transport was arranged to take the children to school.
The bus was loaded with 200 liters of diesel petrol and NSWFR assessed nearby waterways to ensure there were no contamination issues from leaked fuel.
“It’s still smoldering, so we’re letting it cool further before investigating and remediating,” Mr Dewberry said.
The bus caught fire near Kiama on the NSW south coast just before 9am on Thursday
The bus had 200 liters of diesel on board and the cause of the fire will be investigated
The bus is operated by Kiama Coaches.
A mother of one of the students praised the driver on Facebook.
“I would like to publicly thank Gary, who kept my three children safe while taking them to and from school for many years,” Belinda Fagan said.
‘Everyone knows and loves Gary the bus driver because of his friendliness and friendly nature. Because of your efforts today, Gary, I’m having trouble finding appropriate words of thanks.
‘To hear from my daughter how you made sure everyone got off the bus safely. You are nothing less than a hero. Thank you.’
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
The Kiama Public P&C said everyone got off the bus safely and was escorted to school by teachers