Three British female tourists were among 11 injured when a tree fell onto a moving bus in Thailand today.

Biba Rose Waddell, 19, from London, Sophia Rose Alice Ridehalgh, 18, from Welwyn Garden City, and Sasha Chloe Hayes, 18, from Oxford, were onboard the 54-year-old vehicle when the whole trunk crashed onto the roof in Kanchanaburi.

The tree had been hacked down by an illegal logger using a chainsaw, causing it to drop onto the bus.

Dashcam footage from a car traveling behind shows the tree hitting the roof of the bus.

The driver skidded the vehicle across the road as the holidaymakers onboard screamed in terror, coming within a few feet of plunging down a hillside.

Police arrived at the scene and found 36 passengers inside. They said that 11, including the British girls, were taken to the hospital for treatment.

Police Lieutenant Colonel Maneephat Pengklet, investigator at the Lat Ya Police Station, said cops were notified of the accident at 10 am.

He said: 'At the scene on Highway No. 3199, a blue Benz passenger bus was found. It was headed to the Erawan Waterfall and a wormwood tree on the side of the road had fallen on it. The windshield was shattered.

'Initial inspection found at least 30 foreign passengers. There were 10 injured people from shattered glass and broken branches.'

The injured individuals were taken to the Synphaet Hospital for treatment.

Most of the passengers suffered minor injuries and have already been discharged. A Canadian tourist, Jaime Michelle Mitchell, 45, was taken to the ICU with a neck splint.

Land transport official Thawatchai Wiriyajit said will shoulder the patients' hospital bills.

Authorities said the fallen tree may have been cut by an illegal logger using a chainsaw. It was reportedly surrounded by piles of sawdust and showed signs of being cut by a tool.

Paitoon Inthabut, Chief of Salak Phra Wildlife Sanctuary, said rangers were dispatched to track down the suspect, believed to be living not far from the area.

He said: ‘We learned that someone was cutting a tree illegally, which caused the accident. We already have suspects in mind.'

Police later arrested Wasin, 39, who was found keeping tree cutting tools in his white Isuzu pickup truck. Cops also found a document confirming that he was selling lumber.

Athisak Intra, Governor of Kanchanaburi Province, said he has ordered a thorough investigation into the incident.