Bus roof 'ripped off' after railway bridge strike

The driver of a double decker bus which had its rood "ripped off" when it struck a railway bridge has been reported for driving offences.

Greater Anglia was forced to cancel trains running through the village of Kirby Cross, near Frinton-on-Sea in Essex, after the bridge was hit.

Car passenger Tara Palmer, 50, took the photos of the "out of service" bus at about 16:20 GMT on Wednesday.

"The roof had been 90% ripped off and it was slanting off down the back of the bus - it hadn't come off," she said.

"I couldn't see any passengers on board - luckily, I think it was an out of service bus," Mrs Palmer said.

"Although it was a shocking thing, it was like wow. I've never seen anything like that before."

Mrs Palmer, who had recently moved to Frinton, was travelling back from hospital with her husband when they got held up in traffic.

She said she thought the tailback was about two miles long (3km) and was initially confused by the significant delays as it was too early for the rush hour.

The housewife said they spotted a police officer sweeping up the debris beneath the bridge, with the bus parked up on the Clacton-bound carriageway.

Apart from marks in the stonework where the vehicle had scraped through, there seemed to be little other damage to the bridge, according to Mrs Palmer.

A spokesperson for Essex Police said no one was injured and the bus did not have any passengers on board at the time.

The vehicle involved belonged to Hedingham and Chambers bus company and a spokesperson said it was returning to the depot when it crashed.

A spokesperson said: "Fortunately, at the time of the incident, there were no passengers on board as the bus was returning to the depot from service.

"The only person present was our bus driver, who thankfully was unharmed following the impact with the bridge."

Train operator Greater Anglia said services to Colchester and Walton-on-the-Naze had been affected, but the line was now open after Network Rail workers visited the site.

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