A passenger bus erupted into flames after a motorcycle crashed into it early Friday, k!lling at least 25 people and injuring several others in southern India.
The fire tore through the bus within minutes, trapping dozens of passengers as it sped along a highway near Kurnool district in the state of Andhra Pradesh, senior police official Vikrant Patil said.
Some managed to smash open windows and leap to safety with minor injuries while others were charred to death before help could arrive, Patil said.
The bus with 44 passengers aboard was traveling between the cities of Hyderabad in Telangana state and Bengaluru in Karnataka state. The accident occurred in Chinnatekuru village near Kurnool, about 130 miles south of Hyderabad
The motorcycle rammed into the speeding bus from behind and got stuck, Patil said. It was dragged for some distance, causing sparks that engulfed the bus’s fuel tank.
“As the smoke started spreading, the driver stopped the bus and tried to put the fire out by using a fire extinguisher, but the fire was so intense he couldn’t control it,” Patil said.
Most passengers were asleep at the time of the accident. The bus was gutted and the unidentified bike rider also died, he said.
A team of forensic experts was investigating the incident.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Andhra Pradesh’s highest elected official, N. Chandrababu Naidu, offered their condolences to the bereaved families.
This horrific blaze is the second de@dly bus fire in India within weeks.
Earlier this month, a suspected short circuit caused a fire that engulfed a passenger bus in Rajasthan, k!lling at least 20 people.