At least eight people were killed and 21 injured after a sleeper bus travelling from Rishikesh to Indore collided with a trailer and caught fire on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway in Rajasthan’s Dausa district.
At least eight people were killed after a sleeper bus travelling from Rishikesh to Indore caught fire following a collision with a trailer in Rajasthan's Dausa district. | IANS
At least eight people were killed and 21 others were injured after a sleeper bus collided with a trailer and burst into flames on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway in Rajasthan’s Dausa district early Wednesday, according to IANS. Six victims were reportedly burnt alive, while two succumbed to head injuries sustained in the crash.
The bus was travelling from Rishikesh to Indore when it rammed into a trailer moving ahead on the expressway, IANS reported. The collision triggered a massive fire that quickly engulfed both vehicles, trapping several passengers inside the sleeper coach and complicating rescue efforts.
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According to Dausa Superintendent of Police Piyush Dixit, the accident took place near Zero Point in the Tanawad area under Kolwa police station limits. IANS reported that the crash occurred around 2:30 am, while ANI placed the time between 3:15 am and 3:30 am.
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Police said the blaze spread rapidly through the bus, leaving little time for passengers to escape. Both the sleeper coach and the trailer were completely destroyed in the fire.
Twenty-one injured passengers, including children, were admitted to Dausa District Hospital. Many were being treated for burn injuries and trauma.
Preliminary findings suggest the bus driver may have dozed off before the collision, although police said the exact cause of the accident and the subsequent fire remains under investigation.
Authorities have also begun examining claims made by local residents that cartons of cigarettes were stored in the bus’s luggage compartment and may have intensified the blaze.
A villager involved in the rescue operation alleged that several cartons of cigarette packets were found while locals were trying to extinguish the fire.
Police have not confirmed the allegation and said the claim forms part of the ongoing investigation.
Several survivors and local residents alleged that emergency response teams reached the spot after a delay.
Passengers claimed nearby villagers rushed to rescue those trapped inside the burning bus before ambulances and fire brigade personnel arrived. Locals also alleged that by the time fire services reached the site, the bus had already been engulfed, and several passengers had died.
Traffic on both sides of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway remained suspended for nearly an hour before the charred vehicles were removed and movement was restored, officials said.
Authorities are investigating the circumstances that led to the collision, the cause of the fire and the allegations regarding the cargo being carried on the bus.
Former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot expressed grief over the tragedy.
“The news of the tragic road accident on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway in Dausa district, which claimed several lives, is deeply saddening. I extend my heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased. May God grant them strength during this difficult time and bestow peace upon the departed souls. I wish the injured a speedy recovery,” he said.
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