A bus is pulled to safety after being washed off the road by a flash flood.

The vehicle tried to drive through 50cm deep water during heavy rain in Phetchaburi, Thailand, on November 21. But a sudden surge in the current washed the bus perilously close to a river where was trapped on its side between two rocks - inches from disaster.

The passengers and driver scrambled to safety before tractors arrived to haul the bus back onto the road.

Climbing back into the vehicle, driver Chaleaw Buasawai, 75, said: ‘’I’ve been a driver for 30 years and never experienced an event like this.

‘’Before the accident, I dropped off some passengers and then drove back. The route was very watery, so I slowed down to drive through it. I didn’t realise how severe the flood was.

‘’The water blew the bus across the road and fell into the river opposite. Luckily the bus was hanging in a groove. Everybody got out and called for help.''