Kurnool/Hyderabad: In a ghastly pre-dawn tragedy on Friday, at least 20 passengers were burnt alive when a Bengaluru-bound private travel bus from Hyderabad, belonging to Vemuri Kaveri Travels, caught fire near the Ullindakonda Cross, close to Chinnatekur village in Kurnool district.

The fire reportedly broke out around 3:30 a.m. when the bus collided with a two-wheeler, leading to a massive blaze that engulfed the entire vehicle within minutes. According to reports, the motorcycle got dragged underneath with its fuel cap open, triggering the blaze. Investigations by Kurnool officials suggest that the bus, upon colliding with the two-wheeler, suffered a massive oil leak with the bike stuck under the bus. The driver ignored it, but the subsequent combustion triggered a fireball that tore through the vehicle within minutes.

The driver then jumped off the bus. The door, however, later got jammed. According to police reports, the driver and the team are still at large.

The bus, carrying 41 passengers, was reduced to ashes before fire tenders could bring the flames under control.

The biker was among those killed at the spot. “So far, 19 bodies have been retrieved from the charred bus. The biker’s body is in the mortuary,” Kurnool Range DIG Koya Praveen said.

The authorities should enforce stringent action if bus operators fail to follow safety measures and use proper materials to prevent similar devastating incidents in the future, he said.

The DIG stated that no fire control measures were present in the bus that caught fire, highlighting lapses in safety compliance and emergency preparedness during travel.

The bus door got jammed due to a short circuit and the vehicle was completely gutted within minutes. Most survivors were aged between 25 and 35 years, the police added. District Collector A Siri said 41 people were travelling in the bus, including the driver. Of the 41 onboard, 21 have been

traced. Those who escaped the accident are stable and out of danger, she said. Many passengers could not escape the tragedy as it occurred during the night when they were asleep, she said. Most of the passengers belonged to Hyderabad, Siri added.

Some of the survivors recounted the horrific moments, saying thick smoke and fire spread so rapidly that many had no time to escape. They described chaotic efforts to smash windows and scramble free, as sleeping passengers awoke to smoke, flames, and frantic cries for help. “There was chaos and panic as everyone tried to escape through the windows, mainly the back one,” recounted Surya, a Hyderabad youth en route to a job interview, nursing injuries at Kurnool hospital now.