Groom was hours away from marrying fiancée when wedding bus crashed
John Barrett, 56, was riding with six others in the NSW Hunter Valley region yesterday when the bus rolled seven times down an embankment at Mount View about 10.30am.
Moderated by Tomas Kauer 
A groom who is fighting for life in hospital after a minibus crashed on the way to his wedding has been identified as Cessnock man John Barrett.
Barrett, 56, was riding with five others in the NSW Hunter Valley region yesterday when the bus rolled seven times down an embankment at Mount View about 10.30am.
It took paramedics 45 minutes to cut free one of the six occupants, which included Barrett and the driver.
READ MORE: Australian suspects forced to re-enact alleged Bali killing
Barrett, a father of four, was mere hours away from marrying his fiancée Michelle Murphy when the bus crashed.
He was taken to hospital in a critical condition with injured limbs along with a 60-year-old man who suffered head injuries.
They were treated by a specialist team on the ground before being airlifted to John Hunter Hospital in Newcastle.
The four other men suffered more minor injuries and were transported by ambulance.
It is understood some of those on board were Barrett's groomsmen.
Barrett was recently diagnosed with motor neurone disease (MND) and his family had been raising money in support of Professor Dominic Rowe, who runs clinical trials for the disease at Macquarie University.
READ MORE: Millions of Sydney commuters ride free as gates turned off
"This cause is deeply personal to us. As many of you would know John was recently diagnosed with motor neurone disease (MND)," a fundraiser for Barrett reads.
"While we are adjusting to this unfamiliar journey together John was quite clear that he wanted to do what he could to raise funds in support of Professor Dominic Rowe and his team at Macquarie University."
NSW Taxi Council chief executive Nick Abrahim said the manager of the taxi business spoke at the scene with the driver, who had some injuries.
"He did seem ok," Abrahim told 9news.com.au.
"We're just grateful that everybody was able to get out."
Police said the driver will undergo mandatory blood and alcohol testing.
READ MORE: What we know about the massive Russian earthquake and Pacific tsunami
Police yesterday described the crash as "tragic".
"It's a tragic situation, they hadn't actually got to the wedding yet, so they still have a wedding in front of them," NSW Police Superintendent Steve Laksa said.
"We're very fortunate that the injuries weren't fatal. It definitely could've been worse."
The incident follows the wedding bus crash in the Hunter Valley in June 2023 which killed 10 people and injured 25.
DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. Available on the Apple App Store and Google Play.
