A bus driver has been found guilty of driving without due care and attention after his bus became stranded in floodwater with 12 passengers on board.

Tudor Davies, 49, was sacked by Stagecoach after the incident, which left passengers fearing they were going to die, but has been allowed to keep his driving licence.

The passengers were airlifted to safety after three hours stranded on the bus in chest-high water on the B741 in Dailly, Ayrshire, on December 30 last year.

Ten adults and two children were left trapped on the number 58 Stagecoach, which became engulfed in water during a diversion from its usual route between Ayr and Girvan because of Storm Frank.

The men, women and children, who were five and seven, had to stand on top of the handles on the back of the seats for more than three hours before being flown to safety by a helicopter.

Davies was originally charged with dangerous driving but a sheriff on Wednesday convicted him of the lesser charge of driving without due care and attention.

He was handed a £2000 fine and nine penalty points but avoided a driving ban.

Passengers Phyllis Young, 61, and Josephine Smylie, 67, said they feared they might die as water poured into the bus.

Young told Paisley Sheriff Court "I remember the driver saying, 'you're going to need your wellies'. I saw water coming in the bus.

"It was coming in the front door. It took seconds for the bus to fill up. I was watching the water level and thought 'if this keeps going we're basically done for'."

Smylie added: "When I saw the water I thought 'Please God, don't let us go into the water'.

"We didn't stop for long, then the driver started the engine and we went in. As we were driving into the water I phoned my husband and said 'Jim. I'm in Dailly and the road's flooded. I think we're going to go into it and drown. I love you and I love the kids'. I thought the bus would go under."

Passenger John McNaughton, 70, a retired bus driver, said: "The mother of the children was saying 'I hope he's not going to drive in to that' or speaking to the driver saying 'I hope you're not gonna drive into that'.

"Before you drive a bus - before you even get behind a wheel - the first thing you're taught is the health and safety of all the passengers on board is the most important thing.

"The mother of the kids, she was hysterical. I can't seem to get the sound of that and the kids shouting... the mum was shouting, 'we're going to die. My kids are going to die'.

"I reckon folk were fearing for their lives at one point."

Davies insisted he thought it was safe to proceed before his bus turned in to an out-of-control boat.

He said: "I always stop to assess before I make any decision - the safety of passengers is imperative.

"I started moving forward but slowly, my speed was no more than five-miles-per-hour.

"I could see the water level through the door - it was way below the level of the bus. Then, all of a sudden, I could see the water level starting to rise.

"The flood was coming up the road towards the bus like a surge of water. I tried to stop and tried to steer the bus but the force of the water lifted the bus up. The bus became like a boat.

"The force of the water actually lifted the bus and the water came in to the bus - it actually moved the bus across the road.

"A section of the wall [next to the river] actually collapsed as we went through which caused the surge of water."

Davies, who has been a bus driver for 15 years and has won awards for his safe driving, said he was remorseful for what happened and tried his best to keep control of his vehicle.

He added: "The bus floated across and crashed in to the trees.

"I was very nervous and very scared. The bus went in to the trees and smashed the offside windows.

"There was glass everywhere. I was trying to get the glass off myself."

Sheriff Mhairi Mactaggart ruled on Wednesday that Davies' driving was reckless and she convicted him of driving without due care and attention.

She said: "I consider this to be a significant error of judgement and one taken without consideration for your passengers. I do consider this driving was at the higher end of careless driving."