Kurnool Bus Tragedy | 20 Dead as Sleeper Bus Catches Fire

Early Friday morning, a catastrophic accident in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh resulted in 20 fatalities, including two children, when a Hyderabad-Bengaluru AC sleeper bus caught fire after crashing into a motorcycle on National Highway 44 close to the village of Chinnatekuru. The bus, belonging to Vemuri Kaveri Travels, caught fire at around 3 am after towing the motorcycle for a distance and rolling over it, spewing sparks that lit the fuel tank of the motorcycle; the rider of the motorcycle also died, bringing the toll to 20.

When the tragedy occurred there were 46 passengers on board, inclusive of 4 children and 2 drivers, and the fire spread rapidly, trapping many of the passengers inside the burning bus. Locals and police personnel arrived at the scene to help rescue passengers despite rain and flames; firefighters, police, and medical personnel worked for hours to conclude the blaze and move the injured to Kurnool Government General Hospital.

Home Minister Vangalapudi Anitha later confirmed that of the 19 victims who were in the bus, six individuals were from Andhra Pradesh and six from Telangana, two were from Tamil Nadu and two were from Karnataka and one was from Odisha and one was from Bihar. One individual has not yet been identified, and officials indicated that DNA will be used to identify bodies that were so badly burned that they couldn’t be identified.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed deep grief over the dreadfully horrific incident, and sent condolences to the families impacted. He also announced an ex gratia to the next of kin of the individuals who passed away in the amount of ₹2 lakh, and to the injured individuals in the amount of ₹50,000. The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) announced an official tweet that said, “Extremely saddened at the loss of lives due to the mishap in Kurnool district; my thoughts are with the affected people and their families. I pray for the speedy recovery of the injured.”

N. Chandrababu Naidu, Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, expressed his profound sorrow and instructed top officials to reach the scene of the accident-dealing with rescue and relief efforts immediately, while on an official trip to the UAE. He also announced a ₹5 lakh ex gratia for the families of the deceased from Andhra Pradesh and ₹2 lakh for the injured. Telangana’s Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy expressed his sympathy for the families, and asked officials to be in touch with authorities in Andhra to assist their efforts. The Telangana government has established a special helpline to assist families of victims impacted by the catastrophe.

This incident has again put the question of nighttime travel safety and the rigidity of restrictions on transportation safety regulation feels in question.