Hyderabad-bound private bus from Nagpur catches fire, none injured

Around 29 people travelling on a bus from Nagpur to Hyderabad managed to escape uninjured after the vehicle caught fire in Telangana’s Nirmal district in the wee hours of Tuesday. The incident occurred near a toll plaza at Ganjal village in Soan Mandal of the district.

A case of fire accident was registered with the Soan police. Station house officer (SHO) of Soan police station S Ravinder said that officials of the fire department and the road transport authority were instructed to probe the remains of the bus to determine the cause of the mishap.

There were 26 passengers, two drivers and a cleaner on the bus when the fire took place. The bus driver was the first to spot the smoke coming out of the engine chamber. He stopped the bus near the Ganjal toll plaza and went to inspect the



engine.

After the driver found sparking in the bus engine’s wiring, he and the other driver quickly alerted all passengers who were fast asleep. Everyone was made to vacate the bus along with their luggage as soon as possible, the SHO informed, adding the entire bus caught fire within a few minutes.

Due to the alertness of the drivers and cleaner, no passenger was hurt in the mishap.

The bus driver claimed that the fire was a result of some ‘mechanical defects’ in the vehicle, while the cops said a detailed probe by the transport and fire officials will reveal the actual reason.

The bus was owned by one Nagpur-based Puja travels, which operates five to six AC buses on the Nagpur-Hyderabad route almost every day. The passengers later proceeded towards Hyderabad on another bus by the same travel company.