KSRTC bus in flames on bridge; passengers unhurt

A Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) bus caught fire on the ITI flyover (hanging bridge) in KR Puram in the early hours of Wednesday. Around 20 passengers escaped unhurt.

The police said the incident happened around 5 am when the sleeper coach bus was heading to the city from Tirupati. The alert driver woke up the passengers as he noticed smoke billowing in the rearview mirror and asked them to exit. The passengers were in deep sleep when the driver noticed the smoke, the police said.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the bus had developed a technical snag in the engine that could have triggered a spark and caused the fire. It spread through the vehicle in no time.

The bus driver and passengers alerted the police and the fire department, who rushed to the spot and doused the flames. Traffic movement was disrupted for a while on the flyover until the charred bus was moved aside.

Confirming the incident, the KR Puram traffic police said the KSRTC did not register a complaint.

"Police officials reached the spot and helped the fire and emergency officials in dousing the fire. We do not know the registration number of the bus or the driver's name. We did not register any case as there was no casualty or damage," a police officer said.