A BOLTON man has been pulled from the mangled wreckage of this American bus which crashed, injuring 41 people.

Eleven people were seriously hurt in the accident in Nevada, in which the coach rolled over and skidded along the carriageway for 200 feet.

Military helicopters were called in to help ferry the terribly injured casualties to the nearest hospitals in Las Vegas and Reno where some had to have limbs amputated.

And today it was confirmed that a 56-year-old Bolton man had been caught up in the horrific crash.

He was being treated at the Nevada Medical Centre among other casualties who had lost skin and suffered abrasions.

Rick Plummer, a spokesman at the centre, said the man's injuries were not life threatening.

He added: "He suffered from severe abrasions and loss of skin. It's probable that this casualty was not alone as many loved ones were split up to be taken to different medical centres depending on their injuries."

Early today names and details of those injured had not yet been released as officials were still trying to contact their relatives.

The crash, involving passengers who had booked their trip through tour operators Archers Direct at a cost of £1,100 a head, came as the coach drove 30 miles west of the Nevada town of Tonopah.

The group -- 39 holidaymakers, a driver and tour guide -- was on the 10th day of a 15 day break in the western US when tragedy struck. Among those most seriously injured a 72-year-old woman had surgery to have both arms amputated at the elbow and a 46-year-old Derby man had suffered terrible injuries to his left arm. Today a Foreign Office spokesman confirmed that a full investigation had been launched into the crash which came at 2.45pm local time yesterday.

The night before the crash, the group stayed in a Las Vegas hotel before heading for Mammoth Lakes in the Yosemite National Park.

They were due to return to the UK on September 13.

No details of the holidaymakers were available at present but the 39 came from all over the UK and an emergency helpline number for concerned relatives has been issued. Staff from the British Consulates in San Francisco and Los Angeles were travelling to Reno and Las Vegas, where the casualties are being treated.

Representatives from Bromley-based Archers Direct are also en route to the crash scene and hospitals.

A spokesman for the tour operators said: "Senior personnel are currently en route from the UK and staff in the USA are co-operating fully with the local authorities to determine the cause of the crash.

"Our immediate and primary concern is for the welfare of the customers and their relatives."

Today Nevada Highway officers were probing the cause of the smash.

Nevada Highway Patrol spokesman Trooper Richard James said: "The driver for an unknown reason went off the road, crossing both lanes and went off the left hand shoulder of the highway.

"He over-corrected to the right and the bus overturned on to its left side and slid for about 200 feet."

The accident left carnage at the scene with 11 seriously injured people transferred to Las Vegas and 13 minor injury casualties remaining in Tonopah.

Seventeen other casualties were taken to a medical centre in Reno.

The isolated crash site meant that 29 of those injured had to be airlifted to hospital - six in one helicopter, 20 on a Chinook helicopter, two in a fixed wing plane and one in an air ambulance. It is believed that some of the worst injuries were inflicted as the coach skidded along on its side.

Kate Griswold, from the Washoe Medial Centre in Reno, said: "This is a major accident. A lot of the injuries we have seen so far are serious abrasions because the bus apparently rolled and skidded.

"They may have been hanging out of the bus at some point after the first impact."

Today, a hotel employee at The Alpine Lodge complex in Mammoth Lakes, California where the tourists were due to stop the night confirmed they had been told of the accident but had no details of any of the injured passengers.

Archers Direct have set up an emergency helpline number for relatives on 020 8313 3016.