ONE of the bus passengers injured in Wednesday's fatal crash on the A19 south of York is asking for the kind-hearted strangers who helped her to get in touch - so she can thank them properly.

Tracy Milenovic, 25, spoke out as police named the woman driver who died in the crash as Janita Doris Evans, 55, of Osgodby, near Selby.

Mrs Evans, who police said was married, was killed when her Jaguar car ploughed head-on into an Arriva bus in the crash that injured 18 people.

Tracy wants to hear from a man and three women who offered help and comfort as she waited for medical treatment following the accident close to the White Swan Inn, at Deighton.

The Arriva 415 York to Selby bus she was travelling on collided head-on with a Jaguar car which was believed to have been overtaking a queue of traffic heading towards York.

Eighteen people, including the bus driver and passengers, needed hospital treatment. Tracy, from Brayton, near Selby, who works for Help The Aged, in Goodramgate,York, received stitches for facial and knee injuries, which will keep her off work for at least a week.

She told the Evening Press: "There were some people I didn't get the chance to thank properly."

The first of the good Samaritans is a man in his 30s, possibly a nearby resident, who let Tracy use his mobile phone to call her family.

He has short, mid-coloured hair, a clean shaven appearance, and was wearing a "slippery" jacket. She was also helped by two ladies on the bus. One had hurt her toe, had curly hair and wearing glasses. The other had dark, shoulder length hair, dark eyes and was quite tall.

A third woman, possibly a local villager, stroked Tracy's hair and comforted her while she waited for the emergency services to help her.

She said: "I would also like to thank the bus driver personally. I have been told his actions saved our lives."

Tracy can be contacted on 01757 709018.

Updated: 10:23 Friday, October 22, 2004