This is the dramatic scene after a bus burst into flames on a busy West Kingsdown road.

Emergency services were called after the bus caught fire and a tyre blew up in London Road this morning.

Pictures from nearby residents show the burnt-out wreck in the aftermath of the blast - which is thought to have been caused by an engine fault and happened at 7.05am.

Only the driver was on board, and he escaped uninjured after trying to beat off the flames with an on-board fire extinguisher.

Margaret Richards of nearby Ash Tree drive, said: "I heard this explosion and looked out the front window, I could see all the birds flying around.

"A neighbour said she could see smoke from her bedroom window."

She added: "The whole bus was a wreck. It burnt into the road - there was diesel everywhere."

Arriva spokesman Richard Lewis confirmed an investigation had been started.