By Tita Smith In Cessnock and Candace Sutton for Daily Mail Australia
07:02 13 Jun 2023, updated 11:57 13 Jun 2023
- A married couple is among 10 dead in wedding bus crash
- Lynan Scott and husband Andrew both died in accident
As families count the cost of the NSW Hunter Valley wedding bus crash, one in particular has suffered unimaginable tragedy, with two young children orphaned after both their parents died in the accident.
Lynan Scott and her husband Andrew Scott both died in the crash, leaving behind two children under the age of five.
Ms Scott was a mining engineer who worked at Yancoal, the same company as the bridegroom Mitchell Gaffney, whose wedding to Maddy Edsell preceded the tragic crash.
She was also good friends with another crash victim, Tori Cowburn who also perished when the Linq Buslines coach rolled on a highway at Greta just 16km after leaving the Wandin Winery Estate venue after the wedding.
Bus driver Brett Button has been charged with ten counts of dangerous driving occasioning death and was granted bail when he faced Cessnock Local Court on Tuesday.
Lawyer Christopher O’Brien said outside court the 58-year-old was doing ‘OK’.
‘I’ve spoken to my client,’ Mr O’Brien said. ‘He’s happy to be going home. In all of the circumstances he’s doing quite well.’
Lynan and Andrew Scott welcomed their second child just under two years ago, after meeting more than a decade ago.
Originally from Brisbane, Andrew Scott is a former YMCA lifeguard and landscaper turned hospital and health care worker. He was working for NSW Health in Muswellbrook at the time of his death.
Lynan Scott, formerly Lynan Muldoon from a large family in Grafton, NSW, is a Queensland University engineering graduate.
Before moving to Yancoal as a planning superintendent, she had worked at Bengalla mining company and Rio Tinto.
Her motto on her Instagram page is ”Give it all you’ve got’. Her Facebook page has now been changed to a memorial page, with a message asking friends or family to share memories.
Seven of the people who died in the crash dead come from the town of Singleton, 30km away from the wedding venue, where the bride and groom Ms Edsell and Mr Gaffney also live.
Tori Cowburn, a proud auntie of the baby daughter of her brother and his wife who both live in Singleton, leaves behind a partner.
Rebecca ‘Bec’ Mullen was mourned on Facebook by her fiancé, local Singleton Roosters AFL cklub member and financial planner Sam Duncan.
Another family devastated by three deaths is the McBride family, who lost mother and daughter Nadene and Kyah McBride and Kyah’s boyfriend, Kane Symons.
Angus Craig from Queensland and Zachary Bray from Byron Bay are also among those who died, as is Darcy Bulman from Victoria.
Zach Bray’s uncle posted his shock at the death of his nephew in the bus crash.
‘My nephew Zach Bray passed away in last night’s Cessnock bus crash,’ Zach’s uncle Martin Bray said.
‘All my friends and family (are) in shock at the loss of such a beautiful young man.’
Daily Mail Australia confirmed on Monday that Brandon Stafford, a groomsmen who had travelled from Victoria for the wedding, was among the injured.
Their emcee, local reporter Alex Tigani, is recovering at John Hunter Hospital.
He revealed the crash was like ‘a war scene’ and that he was covered in ‘other people’s blood’ after it rolled.
Eight players from Victoria’s Warrandyte Cricket Club and five of their partners are injured, including Brandon Stafford, a third grade cricket XI captain, and the injuries include broken collar bones and a broken jaw.
All the players and their partners are expected to recover.
As well as facing ten counts of dangerous driving occasioning death, Button has been charged with drive manner dangerous and negligent driving causing death.
After sobbing as he sat handcuffed before a magistrate on Tuesday morning the bus driver was freed on bail.
Walking out of the police station seemingly without a scratch, Button appeared to flash the middle finger of his right hand at the media as he walked past the cameras.
Earlier, there was a scuffle outside court as family members and supporters emerged following Button’s brief hearing.
Acting Assistant NSW Police Commissioner David Waddell said on Tuesday that police will allege the driver entered the roundabout in a ‘manner that was inconsistent with the conditions’.
‘Obviously, the speed was too quick for him to negotiate that roundabout, causing the vehicle to fall onto its left side and cause those injuries,’ he said.