At least five people were charred to death after a private sleeper bus caught fire following a collision with a container lorry in Karnataka’s Chitradurga district on Thursday.

The bus was travelling from Bengaluru to Gokarna when it was hit head-on by a container lorry and immediately went up in flames, police said.

Chitradurga Police said they suspect the lorry driver may have fallen asleep at the wheel. “The container lorry jumped over the divider and hit the bus. The lorry driver is dead. There were 32 people on the bus. We have 21 people injured in hospital, and we are looking for more people, the police said.

The police initially said nine people had died, but later retracted the figure. Inspector General of Police (Eastern Range) Ravi Kanthe Gowda said police had earlier suspected that eight passengers and the lorry driver were dead. However, after recovery operations, only four passengers’ bodies and the body of the lorry driver were found.

“We have not found any more bodies. There are three to four passengers whose phones are currently not reachable. Until bodies are found, they cannot be declared dead,” he said, adding that police were hopeful the missing passengers had survived and efforts were on to reach their families.

Several others sustained injuries and were rushed to hospitals in Hiriyur and Chitradurga for treatment.

A survivor named Aditya said the bus left Bengaluru at 11:30 pm and the accident occurred around 2 am. “I fell down after the accident, broke the glass and managed to get out. Many people were screaming, but by then the fire had engulfed the bus,” the survivor said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the tragedy. “Deeply saddened by the loss of lives due to a mishap in the Chitradurga district of Karnataka. Condolences to those who have lost their loved ones. May those injured recover at the earliest,” he said.

The Prime Minister announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund for the next of kin of each deceased, while the injured will receive Rs 50,000.

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar also condoled the deaths. “The news of the accident that occurred near Hiriyur between a bus and a truck travelling from Bengaluru to Gokarna, resulting in several people being burned alive, has come as a severe shock. I convey my condolences to those who have died. I pray that the injured recover soon. May such tragedies never recur,” he said.

A similar incident was reported on Wednesday when nine people were killed after a government bus swerved to the opposite side and collided with two vehicles, police said. The bus changed direction due to a tyre burst, they said, adding 4 people, including two children, sustained severe injuries, and they were being treated at state-run hospitals.

Source: India Today