At least 25 people were killed and several others injured when a passenger bus erupted in flames after colliding with a motorbike in southern India early Friday morning. The tragic incident occurred near Chinnatekuru village in Andhra Pradesh’s Kurnool district, about 210 kilometers south of Hyderabad.
According to senior police official Vikrant Patil, the bus was traveling from Hyderabad in Telangana to Bengaluru in Karnataka when the motorbike rammed into it from behind. The impact caused the two vehicles to become entangled, dragging the bike along the highway and triggering sparks that ignited the bus’s fuel tank.
Within minutes, the vehicle was engulfed in flames. Of the 44 passengers on board—many of whom were asleep—only a few managed to escape by smashing windows and jumping out. Several others were trapped inside and burned to death. The unidentified motorbike rider also perished in the crash.
Mr. Patil reported that the bus driver attempted to douse the flames with a fire extinguisher, but the blaze spread too quickly to contain. By the time emergency responders arrived, the bus had been completely gutted.
A forensic team has begun investigating the cause of the fire and the sequence of events leading to the disaster.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed condolences to the families of the victims, describing the accident as a “deeply distressing” tragedy.
The incident underscores persistent safety concerns on India’s highways, where high-speed travel, poorly maintained vehicles, and lax enforcement of traffic regulations continue to contribute to deadly crashes.
