Bus Catches Fire in Wayanad
Published: 15th February 2015 05:57 AM | Last Updated: 15th February 2015 05:57 AM | A+A A-
MANANTHAVADY: The passengers of a running private bus had a miraculous escape after the air-conditioned vehicle burst into flames around 2.30 am at Thazhe 54, around five km from here, in the early hours of Saturday. The bus was plying from Ernakulam to Bengaluru.
There were 38 passengers, including the bus crew, on board when the incident occurred. One passenger, identified as Jithesh, hailing from Thalassery, sustained minor injuries when he jumped out from the bus in panic.
The Volvo bus, belonging to Kallada Travels, was completely gutted. Primary interrogations revealed that the bus, bearing a Karnataka registration number, caught fire after the top portion of the bus touched the overhead high-voltage electrical lines while the driver tried to negotiate a curve.
A major accident was averted as all the passengers in the bus were awake as it had a nshort stopover at Mananthavady.
“The driver noticed flames on the right top of the front portion of the bus, so he stopped the vehicle and immediately alerted the passengers who got down within seconds. The fire spread inside and it got completely burnt,” said a bus employee.Before fire tenders from Mananthavady could reach the spot, the fire spread all through the bus, along with passengers’ luggage in the cabin.
The Mananthavady police have registered a case.