A hero passenger stepped in to save a coach full of Pink fans after the driver passed out behind the wheel. Dad-of-two Alex Brewster, 40, was with 51 other passengers travelling from South Lanarkshire to the singer's concert at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland, on Saturday June 10.
The bus was on the M74 near Moffat when the Caledonian Travel staff member lost consciousness during roasting 29°C temperatures. The vehicle was driving at a speed of around 70mph. Passengers screamed in terror as the coach began to swerve across the lanes of the motorway while the driver was slumped in his seat.
Alex, from Larkhall, sprang into action and grabbed the wheel of the out-of-control vehicle to steer it away from road barriers, before pulling on the handbrake to slow it down.
He told the Daily Record : "I noticed the bus swerving and jumped up from my seat. I was sitting directly behind the bus driver. Luckily, I'm a qualified bus driver.
"It's just sheer luck that I was there. I dread to think what could have happened that day."
Alex's wife Siobhan, 45, who was also on the coach, said her husband's quick-thinking may have saved lives. She added: "I’m glad Alex was there and it was just one person left needing medical help and not a coach full of people."
Three nurses from Crosshouse Hospital in Kilmarnock were also on board the bus and rushed to treat the stricken driver. One of the nurses, Emma Bavidge, believes she is lucky to be alive.
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The 25-year-old from East Kilbride said: "It was absolutely terrifying. The bus was swerving and everyone was screaming and shouting in the panic.
"It felt like something very serious was about to happen and Alex definitely saved lives with his actions. I feel very lucky to have gotten out of the situation alive.
"Myself and another two nurses went to assist the driver. We took him off the bus and he was very distressed. But we were all suffering from the heat that day."
Alex praised the nurses for their assistance with the driver. He said: "The nurses joined me straight away. They tried to wake him up while I took control of the coach.
"Once the coach was stopped they got the driver off. He was lucky they were there."
Alex had managed to get the bus onto the hard shoulder while the three nurses attended to the driver at the side of the road as traumatised passengers looked. Police medics and an air ambulance then arrived at the scene to take the driver to hospital.
Officers then asked Alex to get behind the wheel again to take the bus and its passengers to Moffat Service Station under an escort before a replacement driver to take them to the concert was arranged.
"We all started to relax a bit at that point and thankfully we all made it to the concert in one piece," Emma continued. "We heard the next day that the poor bus driver had some kind of heart event, but he had been discharged from hospital and was resting at home.
"It was an eventful trip, but we are so thankful that no one was injured."
A Caledonian Travel spokesperson said: "We very much appreciate the concerns expressed by our clients who were travelling to the Pink concert last weekend.
"The coach was brought safely to a standstill. We are most grateful for this precautionary assistance and we sincerely hope that our clients went on to enjoy the concert.
"We are happy to report that the driver is recovering well whilst currently undergoing medical examination."
