One person is fighting for life and several others have been hospitalised when the Transperth bus they were on crossed veered into oncoming traffic before slamming into a tree at speed.

Emergency services rushed to the chaotic scene on Joondalup Drive in Wanneroo just after 11am, after a bus veered onto the wrong side of the road, mounting the curb before slamming into a large tree.

The impact was so severe it sent shockwaves through the surrounding streets which neighbour Jonathon Mitchell said was deafening.

“I heard there was a massive crash. It sounded like a ladder or something metal fell over just outside,” Mr Mitchell said.

“The whole house shuddered a little bit too. It was pretty extreme.”

Mr Mitchell rushed to help.

“We came outside and we saw the bus. The crowd gathered pretty quick. I was just wondering if people were okay. It was a bit chaotic,” he said.

St John WA sent eight ambulance crews to the scene, including Special Operations paramedics.

Five people were pulled from the wreckage and rushed to hospitals across Perth.

A man in his 50s was taken to Joondalup Health Campus under lights and siren where he remains in a critical condition.

A second patient was taken to the same hospital.

Three others — including a woman in her 60s, a woman in her 40s, and two men in their 30s and 40s — were taken to Royal Perth Hospital.

One was transported under lights and sirens.

Aside from the critically injured man, the remaining patients are being treated for a range of minor to serious injuries.

Local resident Marius Le Roux was the first in his house to see the aftermath and described the desperate moments before emergency services arrived.

“I just heard a big sort of like metal crashing. And then I looked out of my window... I saw them trying to pull people out of the bus,” Mr Le Roux said.

“There were a couple of people that sat down. A lot of people just had their hands on their head. I think they were shocked, to be honest.”

Mr Le Roux said the gravity of the situation hit home when he realised how close the bus came to hitting his own property.

“Yeah, it’s a bit scary,” he said.

“He could have swerved off the other way and hit us because it’s basically the same distance,

“And the thought of him actually coming over to this side and hitting our house was, that was the realisation of how lucky we were that he actually ended up on that side, hoping that the driver is okay. But yeah, it was a bit scary to see that.”

A Department of Fire and Emergency Services spokesperson confirmed that while the front of the bus was heavily damaged, no one was trapped inside the vehicle.

Both neighbours praised the rapid response of the community and paramedics.

“Before people got there, a couple of people rushed over to make sure people were okay,” Mr Mitchell said.

“Once the first responders got here, everyone was very orderly and let them do their jobs,

“First responders did a great job at getting out here and getting people off to hospital and making sure everyone’s okay. So it was great to see, but yeah, it’s a real shame, I’m just nervous to see that everyone’s okay, that’s all that matters after all.”

Mr Le Roux echoed those thoughts as the community waits for news on the victims.

“I just stood over here, just watched, and yeah, it was just quite scary to see. I Just hope that everyone was all right. But you never know because the front of the bus is pretty mangled up,” he said.

“I just hope for the best, I hope everyone’s alright. Pray for them in hospital and hope they make a flash recovery.”

Joondalup Drive was closed between Burns Beach Road and Wanneroo Road for several hours as traffic heavy areas were cleared and investigators processed the scene.

Police confirmed they attended the crash and have launched an investigation into what caused the bus to veer off the road.

Anyone with information, or who witnessed the crash, is urged to contact Crime Stoppers.