CHITRADURGA: The blaze that engulfed a private sleeper coach on National Highway 48 in Karnataka’s Chitradurga district in the early hours of Thursday was triggered when a fuel tanker truck jumped the road divider and rammed into the bus, causing it to burst into flames, police said to news agency ANI.The crash has so far claimed over twenty lives, while several others sustained serious injuries.The accident occurred around 3 am near Gorlath Cross in Hiriyur taluk of Chitradurga district. The impact of the collision engulfed the sleeper coach in flames in the middle of the highway, trapping several passengers inside the vehicle.Also read: Karnataka highway tragedy: Over 20 burnt alive as Bengaluru-Shivamogga bus catches fire in Chitradurga
Police and fire service personnel rushed to the spot and launched rescue operations.Sources confirmed that more than 20 passengers were burned alive in the bus, but police and fire staff retrieved nine bodies from the bus as of 8 am, while several injured passengers were shifted to a nearby hospital.
Inspector general of police BR Ravikante Gowda told news agency ANI, "a school bus travelling parallel to the sleeper coach also collided with the burnt vehicle. However, all 48 students on board escaped unhurt. The school bus driver is an eyewitness to the incident."
Police said the bus was carrying 29 passengers — 15 women and 14 men — against a seating capacity of 32. Of them, 25 were from Gokarna, two from Kumta and two from Shivamogga.Chitradurga superintendent of police Ranjith visited the accident site to supervise rescue and investigation work. A case has been registered at the Hiriyur Rural police station.Reacting to the tragedy, Prime Minister's Office (PMO) tweeted, "Deeply saddened by the loss of lives due to a mishap in the Chitradurga district of Karnataka. Condolences to those who have lost their loved ones. May those injured recover at the earliest. An ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh from PMNRF would be given to the next of kin of each deceased. The injured would be given Rs. 50,000: PM Narendra Modi."The accident led to a massive traffic jam on NH-48, with vehicles stranded for nearly 30 km up to Shiravara, police said.