Up to 18 people are in hospital after a crash involving a double-decker tour bus and an MTA bus in Manhattan, New York.

It happened on 1st Avenue on Thursday evening and first responders were called to the scene at 7pm.

Those injured have cuts, bruises and scrapes, as well as head and neck injuries and suspected fractures, New York EMS Division 1 deputy chief Paul Hopper confirmed.

None of those injured have life-threatening injuries and about 63 people at the scene were assessed by a fire department doctor.

‘We’ve had a few minor challenges in the double-decker bus – going through the windows, taking people out,’ Mr Hopper confirmed.

Ropes and ladders were also used to rescue people from the buses, Kevin Murphy from the New York Fire Department confirmed.

‘The first two units arrived to find two buses involved in what appeared to be a serious accident, complicated by the fact that one of them was a double-decker bus,’ Mr Murphy said at a news conference at the scene.

‘Any time you have two buses involved you have a significant number of patients that likely need to be treated,’ he said.

Around 18 people have been taken to hospital after a crash involving a MTA bus and a double decker tour bus in Manhattan (Picture: Getty Images)

The fire department doctor assessed around 63 people at the scene of the crash (Picture: Reuters)

A man receives medical assistance at the site of the bus crash (Picture: Reuters)

‘So seeing that quantity of people right away, I think the units did a very good job getting them off the bus quickly and taken to the appropriate resources,’ he added.

‘I heard the lady next to me scream, so I looked up and I saw this bus barrelling towards us,’ said Ishrak Jahan, a passenger on one bus.

‘I just saw glass everywhere for a second. It was honestly like I was in a movie… I saw blood. I immediately called 911.’

Fire department officials confirmed it is not yet clear what caused the crash.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority confirmed there was a crash at 7:17 p.m. on bus route X27.

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‘I heard the lady next to me scream, so I looked up and I saw this bus barrelling towards us,’