Indore, July 21 (IANS) A sleeper bus en route from Indore to Pune turned into a fireball late Sunday evening after a collision with a container truck near Teehi village, under the Kishanganj police station area.

The accident occurred around 8 p.m. on the Agra-Mumbai National Highway, shortly after the bus crossed the Mhow bypass, a police official said. The bus, operated by a private travel company, had departed Indore around 7 p.m. carrying approximately 40 passengers. According to reports and police sources, the bus was moving at a steady pace when it suddenly jolted, followed by smoke emerging from the front cabin. Moments later, the bus collided head-on with a container truck, causing the front portion to crumple and ignite. Panic spread quickly among the passengers as flames engulfed the front of the vehicle.

Despite the chaos, over 30 passengers managed to escape before the fire consumed the entire bus. Eight individuals, including the driver and a woman passenger, sustained injuries in the collision. Police have not yet confirmed, but said no casualties were reported, though the bus was reduced to ashes before emergency services could arrive.

The driver, trapped in the cabin, was rescued with difficulty by local residents who rushed to the scene. The injured were transported to a nearby hospital for treatment. The conductor of the bus stated that thick smoke was emanating from the container truck, which may have impaired the driver’s visibility and contributed to the crash.

The fire brigade was alerted immediately, but it reportedly took nearly half an hour for them to reach the site, by which time the bus was completely destroyed.

The passengers, many of whom lost their belongings in the blaze, were visibly shaken and traumatised. Traffic on the highway was disrupted for several hours following the incident, as police from Mhow and Pithampur arrived to manage the scene and begin an investigation.

The bus operator arranged for an alternate vehicle to transport the remaining passengers to Pune. Authorities are now probing the cause of the fire and the circumstances leading to the collision.

–IANS

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