A TEENAGE boy was seriously hurt after a bus accidentally drove over him following a collision, witnesses said.

The 17-year-old was in collision with an M1 Wilts and Dorset bus on Commercial Road in Bournemouth yesterday.

Passers-by urged the driver to reverse so they could help him - but witnesses said the shocked driver then went forwards over his leg.

Dorset Police said they were called to the accident at 2.15pm outside Smokin’ Aces bar.

A man from a shop who asked not to be named said: “I could see his foot sticking out under the tyre and people were telling the driver to reverse.

“But instead of reversing he came forward and it went over the foot then. The bus driver must have been in shock as well.”

Josh Mitchell, 21, whose flat overlooking the scene and who works at Aruba, said: “I heard a big bang and a lot of people shouting that somebody was stuck under the bus.

“Everyone shouted at the bus driver to reverse but then he went forward. I heard people shouting ‘stop going forwards, you are meant to go back’.

“I saw the injured guy later. His face was bleeding a lot – his nose was definitely broken and he had cuts on his head.

“There was a lot of blood around his leg and I heard someone say it was broken.

“He looked like a language student. He had flip-flops and shorts. He looked maybe Spanish. The blood on the pavement was pretty brutal.”

A Wilts & Dorset spokesman said: “We are helping the police investigation into the incident and CCTV footage will be supplied to the officers in charge. “The company wishes for a full and fast recovery for the pedestrian who is believed to be a foreign student.”

Witnesses said staff from Smokin’ Aces were the first to help but they declined to comment.

A South Western Ambulance Service spokesman said the boy suffered injuries to his face, lower legs and feet.

Dorset Police spokesman said the injuries are not thought to be life threatening.

Speaking at the scene, Sgt Sarah Jones said: “The male pedestrian has been taken to Southampton Hospital.”

The bus had a shattered front windscreen.

When it was moved around 3.45pm, it revealed a large patch of blood behind the front nearside wheel.

A female passenger was taken to Poole hospital for treatment for chest pains.

The road was closed at The Triangle and traffic was diverted down Avenue Road past Bournemouth Library.