Video footage of a bus that caught fire in Nalgonda. | Photo credit: Arrangement
Twenty-nine passengers of a private sleeper bus had a miraculous escape after it caught fire near Veliminedu of Chityal mandal in Nalgonda district, nearly 70 km away, around 1.30 am on Tuesday.
The Vihari Travels bus had left Hyderabad on Monday night and was heading to Kandukur in Nellore in neighboring Andhra Pradesh when the driver noticed sparks coming from the engine, Nalgonda DSP K. Shivarami Reddy said.
Driver Krishna immediately stopped the bus and evacuated the passengers with the help of the other driver. While all passengers escaped unhurt, the bus was completely gutted as it was engulfed in flames within minutes, which started from the engine.
“The bus had two emergency exits, one at the back and the other on the right (driver’s side). This made it easy to evacuate the passengers even in the midst of tense moments,” Nalgonda Deputy Transport Commissioner N. Vani said.
After several checks, transport department officials concluded that the fire could have been caused by a short circuit. “However, we are awaiting the findings of the fire brigade to determine the cause of the fire,” she said.
The bus stopped at Choutuppal for a tea break. Veliminedu, the place where the bus caught fire, is 15 km from Choutuppal. The driver and passengers were alert as they had taken a break a few minutes earlier, the DTC said. They opened the two emergency doors and made sure all passengers got out safely.
Based on the information of the head of the travel agency, the Chityal police registered a case of fire accident. They are awaiting a report from the fire department and the Department of Transportation to assess the suitability of the bus and the cause of the fire before accepting a call for further investigation.
This is the third major bus accident (two private and one from TGSRTC) in Telangana and AP in less than three weeks. While 19 persons were burnt to death after a private sleeper bus caught fire on October 24 near Kurnool, 19 people died after a gravel-laden truck rammed into an oncoming TGSRTC bus near Chevella on November 3.
Published – 11 Nov 2025 20:42 IST
