A DOUBLE-decker bus carrying 70 passengers overturned this morning in what police described as a "major incident".
Emergency services raced to the scene on the A39 Quantock Road in Bridgwater, Somerset, at around 6am following reports of a crash.
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Police said 54 people were triaged at the scene and it was too early to confirm if their injuries were life-threatening.
A further 26 were described as "walking wounded".
Several were trapped on board the coach, which was transporting workers to Hinkley Point C nuclear power station.
Most have now been taken to nearby hospitals, it is understood.
Dramatic footage shows passengers clambering out of the wreckage in the dark this morning.
A source told The Enquirer: "The bus is understood to have swerved to avoid a motorbike.
Did you see what happened? Call 020 7782 4100 or email
"The air ambulance is on site and medics have set up a triage scene at the site."
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Cops said the vehicle flipped on its side amid "extremely icy and dangerous" conditions.
The road remains closed with a "significant number" of police, fire and ambulance crews on site.
A Hinkley Point C spokesperson said: "A bus carrying members of the workforce has been involved in a traffic incident on the A39 in Bridgwater.
"Emergency services are on the scene and travel to and from the site has been suspended."
Avon and Somerset Police today urged people to "only travel if essential" following this morning's crash and 53 others last night.
A further 67 calls were received for other road-related incidents between 6pm and 11pm, mostly as a result of plunging temperatures which fell to as low as -10C overnight.
Seven are believed to have resulted in injuries.
Superintendent Mark Runacres said: "We are advising the public to only travel where absolutely essential due to the treacherous driving conditions.
"If travel is necessary, we ask the public to take extreme caution and allow additional time to travel.
"We have seen a significantly higher number of road-related collisions and incidents in the past 12 hours, which has increased the demand on police resources.
"We are working with local authorities and National Highways to ensure roads are properly gritted ahead of the rush hour traffic to improve driving conditions."
South Western Ambulance Service added: "Please take care while travelling this morning, the conditions are extremely icy due to the freezing overnight temperatures and residual water on the road from the past week's wet weather."
The wintry weather sparked yellow and amber alerts for southern and north-western England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
The Met Office has warned of huge travel delays and power cuts amid heavy snow.
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