Eight people were killed when the bus they were travelling in caught fire on the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal Expressway near Nuh in Haryana on Friday night, May 17. According to the reports, a bus was carrying devotees from Chandigarh and Punjab who were returning from a pilgrimage to Mathura and Vrindavan. There were about 60 people, including children and women, where eight were burnt alive, and 24 others were injured.
A bus passenger said, "We hired a tourist bus and set out to visit Banaras, Mathura, and Vrindavan. We noticed flames at the rear of the bus, but it was too late."
Locals in the area who noticed the blaze tried to alert the driver by shouting and managed to stop the bus with the help of a young biker who chased it on the bike. Despite several efforts to extinguish the fire and rescue those trapped inside, eight people died, and around 24 were badly burned to death.
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According to people present at the spot, they informed the police and fire department, but the police reached after three hours of the incident. Firefighters managed to control the blaze, but significant damage had already been done. Superintendent of Police Narendra Bijarania confirmed the fatalities and injuries, stating that the deceased have not yet been identified and that the police are continuing their investigation.
A woman passenger, who was an eyewitness, told news agency PTI that she jumped out of the bus and saved herself after learning about it being on fire.
Visuals from the Accident Site:
"I heard a sound from under the bus. I thought the vehicle was plying on an elevated structure on the road; hence made the sound. However, later there was a smell as well. A biker who was behind the bus for several kilometres overtook and came to the front, and told the driver that the bus had caught fire. I was sitting in one of the front seats, so I jumped," she said.
Nuh MLA Aftab Ahmed said, "I would say that this is a very painful, sad and heart-wrenching incident. The devotees were returning from Vrindavan. The bus caught fire and several people inclduing elderly, women, and children got injured."
Another man who was present at the spot told PTI that, he broke open a few windows of the bus and managed to pull out a 5-10 passengers. However, he failed to help further as the fire raged on fiercely.