Naked terror as bus crashes

Cahla McKenzie and Tiana, 9. Photo / Supplied

Bus passengers screamed in terror after a packed Naked Bus crashed.

Cahla McKenzie and her 9-year-old daughter Tiana were thrown from their seats when the Auckland to Wellington overnight bus smashed into a pole after failing to take a corner in Rotorua on Friday night.

Another passenger tweeted: "F****** terrifying to wake up to people screaming and crying. Never using their services again, cheap or not."

McKenzie said the bus had been weaving across the road before the crash.

McKenzie suffered bruising and her daughter smacked her head on a step. "The driver jumped off without asking how we were. He said it had been getting too hot."

Naked Bus chief executive Hamish Nuttall said the experienced driver had simply misjudged a corner in roadworks. "We apologised for the delay and the stress of what happened."

Police took statements and Nuttall said none of the passengers told police the driver had been asleep.

The bus sustained a cracked windscreen and side panel. The passengers were transferred to another bus at a depot near Taupo.

McKenzie said some of the 49 passengers were stunned they continued with same driver to Wellington.

She said she hadn't been offered any compensation by the company. Her brother-in-law would drive her back to Auckland. "I'm never travelling Naked Bus again."

Police were investigating the cause of the crash.