Bus goes up in flames, all passengers safe

Tribune News Service

Panchkula, May 23

A private luxury bus was gutted in a fire as its diesel chamber exploded in the wee hours of Wednesday.

The bus was on its way from Shimla to Delhi.

There were about 15 passengers in the bus, but all escaped unhurt. However, they did not get the time to save their belongings, which were kept in a separate chest in the bus.

Fire engines were called from Kalka and Panchkula. “When we reached there, the fire was raging. Within 15 minutes, the fire was under brought control, but by then, the bus was gutted,” said fireman Vishwas from the Kalka fire station, who was part of fire tender team.

Inspector Sukhbir Singh, SHO of the Pinjore police station, said a DDR had been registered in the incident as it was an accidental fire.

How it caught fire

The bus belonged to Raju Travels, Patiala. Inspector Sukhbir Singh said as soon as the bus reached the light point after crossing the Pinjore bypass, one of its tyres got punctured around 3.30 am. The bus was parked on the side. As the driver and his associate were changing the tyre, another tyre under the diesel tank exploded, which caused a fire in the diesel chamber. Soon, flames engulfed the bus. Some of the passengers had already alighted, but some were sleeping inside. They were woken up and rescued. They took a separate bus to reach Delhi.