News Desk – At least 20 people were killed early Friday after a private Kaveri Travels bus caught fire following a collision with a bike near Chinna Tekuru village in Andhra Pradesh’s Kurnool district.
The bus was travelling from Hyderabad to Bengaluru with more than 40 passengers on board when the accident happened. Moments after the impact, the vehicle went up in flames, trapping several passengers inside.
Officials said 12 passengers managed to escape through windows, many with burn injuries, while others were charred to death as the fire spread rapidly.
District Collector Dr. Siri said that 21 people have been traced so far, and 11 bodies have been identified. Nine bodies are yet to be identified. She added that the bus door got jammed and failed to open after the fire broke out, making rescue difficult.
DIG Koya Praveen said that while the bike collision triggered the fire, flammable materials inside the bus made it worse. He noted that the bus’s fuel tank was intact but the vehicle lacked proper safety measures.
Firefighters and rescue teams worked through the morning to douse the flames and recover bodies. The final death toll will be confirmed after cooling operations are completed.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu expressed his condolences to the victims’ families and directed officials to provide immediate relief and medical care to the injured.
