A hero bus driver who died saving his passengers on a mountain road in the Alps has been honoured for his bravery.
Maurice Wrightson was descending the precarious D211 road from French ski resort Alpe d’Huez with 51 British resort staff when the brakes on the coach he was driving failed.
It was as he approached the 21st hairpin bend, in April 2013, when the 63-year-old realised the brakes were no longer responding and he was faced with making a sudden decision.
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To avoid the risk of the coach failing to take the bend and tipping into the ravine alongside the road, Mr Wrightson chose instead to crash the coach into the rocks on the other side of the bend.
When it hit the boulders, the County Durham-based Classic Coaches vehicle burst into flames with the Ashington man tragically losing his own life.
His brave actions saved all of the passengers on board, with four suffering serious injuries.
French investigators said Mr Wrightson had "undoubtedly prevented" the more serious consequences of the vehicle leaving the road.
He has now been honoured with a posthumous Queen's Commendation for Bravery, more than eight years after the fatal crash.
Mr Wrightson was recognised after fellow driver Liz Fullarton and senior coroner for North Northumberland Tony Brown wrote to Her Majesty the Queen.
The Duchess of Northumberland, in her capacity as Lord-Lieutenant of Northumberland, recently visited Ashington to present the award to Mrs Hannah Crackett for the bravery of her late son.
She said: "This award gives national recognition to acts of great bravery in the face of grave danger and is only given out in exceptional circumstances.
"Tragically Maurice's heroic actions meant he lost his own life, but without a doubt his swift and selfless actions helped to save the lives of so many others.
"I’m deeply honoured to be able to have presented Hannah, Maurice's mother, with his award and to show his act of incredible bravery has not been forgotten."
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