NEW DELHI: Survivors of the tragic Kaveri Travels bus fire in Andhra Pradesh on Friday recounted moments of sheer terror as they woke to find the vehicle engulfed in flames after colliding with a bike. Passengers described being trapped inside as the bus doors remained locked, forcing them to break emergency windows to escape. Among them, Jayant Kushwaha, Ashwin, and Ashok shared chilling accounts of how they narrowly survived while around 20 others managed to flee, and at least 20 passengers lost their lives in the accident.
Jayant Kushwaha, who was travelling from Hyderabad, recounted the terrifying incident saying he was in disbelief upon seeing the flames as soon as he woke up.Jayant said he woke around 2:30am to find himself and other passengers trapped, as the bus doors remained locked. Along with two or three others, he tried to break the emergency windows to escape.“Around 2:30-2:40am, the bus stopped, and I woke up and I saw that the bus caught fire. Only two three people were awake. We yelled and woke everybody up. The doors were locked. We couldn’t locate the driver. We broke the emergency window as the main door was locked and jumped out. Many people jumped out of the bus by breaking the windows,” Jayant told news agency ANI.Another eyewitness, Ashwin, said about 20 passengers managed to escape, but several others could not. He added that he alerted the driver about the fire.“Last night, we boarded the bus at Kukatpally to travel to Bengaluru. I was seated behind the driver’s seat. After a long journey, between 2:30 and 3:30am, I noticed a fire on the window side and immediately alerted the driver. The bus was stopped right away. Meanwhile, we tried to break the windows to escape. Around 20 people managed to get out of the bus, but the others were unable to escape,” Ashwin told.Ashok, a Hyderabad native working in Bengaluru and returning after celebrating the Deepavali festival, described his own harrowing escape.“When I heard a sudden thud followed by an explosion, I opened my eyes and saw the bus engulfed in flames. I quickly broke the windows and jumped out. Two other passengers jumped out along with me,” he recounted.The ill-fated Kaveri Travels carrying 41 passengers in Andhra Pradesh’s Kurnool district caught fire after colliding with a bike that got stuck beneath it, killing at least 20 people, officials confirmed on Friday.Kurnool District Collector (DC) A Siri said 11 bodies have been identified, while nine remain unaccounted for. The accident occurred between 3:00am and 3:10am.“There are a total of 41 members in the bus, including two drivers. A bike got stuck under the bus. After the accident, petrol leaked from the bike and caught fire. Of the 41 members, we have traced 21 passengers; they are safe. 11 dead bodies have been removed from the bus. 21 members have minor injuries and are undergoing treatment. We have to confirm about the remaining 9 bodies,” DC Siri said.She added that the bus doors failed to open, though both drivers managed to escape.“This incident happened late at night, and the passengers were sleeping. The bus wires were cut after the accident, and the bus doors didn’t open after the accident. We’re investigating the matter. The two drivers escaped from the fire. The passengers were coming from Hyderabad, and we’re tracing the deceased family members. We’ve set up a control room for help,” DC Siri said.A fire official highlighted the lack of safety equipment to break the windows.“The bus collided with a bike, dragged it and caused the bike’s petrol to leak, which led to a fire. There were no safety hammers to break glass after the fire accident. The bus driver didn’t stop after the collision with the bike. The bus diesel tank didn’t catch fire, but the bus was totally damaged. We’re investigating the matter,” the official said.President Droupadi Murmu expressed grief over the loss of lives.“The loss of lives in a tragic bus fire accident in Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh, is deeply unfortunate. I extend my heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family members and pray for the speedy recovery of those injured,” President Murmu posted on X.The injured were shifted to Kurnool Government Hospital.Andhra Pradesh chief minister Chandrababu Naidu assured support to the injured and affected families.“I am shocked to learn about the devastating bus fire accident near Chinna Tekur village in Kurnool district. My heartfelt condolences go out to the families of those who have lost their loved ones,” he posted on X.Telangana Government announced ex-gratia to Kurnool bus accident victims with Rs 5 lakhs to the families of the deceased and Rs 2 lakhs to those injured in the Kurnool bus accident. All necessary measures are being taken to ensure the injured receive quality medical treatment, said State Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar.
