Vietnam bus fire kills 7; Driver says he was sleepy, survivors tell of escape | Today’s news

At least seven people died and five others were injured after a passenger bus caught fire early Tuesday in southern Vietnam.

According to The Times of India, citing Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Security, the 24-seater bus was traveling from Lam Dong province to Ho Chi Minh City when it hit the embankment in Hung Thinh village around 2am. The impact sparked a fire that quickly engulfed the vehicle.

The bus driver, 41-year-old Tran Thanh Hai, shouted at passengers to evacuate as flames spread through the cabin, VnExpress reported. Firefighters from Dong Nai Fire Prevention, Fire and Rescue Police brought the fire under control in about 30 minutes after dispatching emergency vehicles to the scene.

Five injured passengers were taken to Thong Nhat General Hospital for treatment, while authorities recovered the bodies of seven victims from the charred bus. One survivor has since been released with minor injuries.

A survivor recounts the escape

One of the survivors, Than Thao, told Vietnam’s 24h news, as quoted by The Week, that she woke up after hearing a loud noise around 2 a.m. and saw the bus engulfed in flames.

“Everyone rushed to grab their things and get out of the car. At that moment, flames shot out of one of the middle doors, so everyone had to run forward and then jump out. There were still a lot of people in the car at the time, but they didn’t get out in time. It wasn’t until the morning that I found out that seven people were wedged inside. I was the last one to get out and suffered minor burns.”

Other survivors said passengers sitting in the front managed to escape, while those in the back of the bus were unable to get out before the fire spread.

Authorities are investigating the cause of the crash. According to police, the driver tested negative for alcohol and drugs. However, he allegedly admitted that he was distracted while driving and was drowsy due to lack of sleep.