Over nine feared dead after sleeper coach bus catches fire in Karnataka collision

At least nine passengers are feared to have been burned alive after a sleeper coach bus caught fire following a collision with a speeding truck in Karnataka’s Chitradurga district in the early hours of Christmas Day.

The accident occurred around 2 am at Gorlattu Cross on National Highway 48 when a truck travelling in the opposite direction reportedly lost control, jumped the divider and crashed head-on into the private sleeper coach bus. The impact triggered a fire, trapping several passengers inside.

Police officials said nine passengers are currently missing and are presumed dead, though the exact death toll will be confirmed once the charred bodies are retrieved from the bus. The truck driver, identified as Kuldeep and a native of Uttar Pradesh, was killed on the spot.

The bus, operated by Sea Bird Travels, was en route from Bengaluru to the coastal town of Gokarna with around 32 passengers on board. While several passengers managed to escape after the vehicle caught fire, many suffered burn injuries and fractures.

According to district authorities, 12 passengers with minor injuries were admitted to Hiriyur taluk hospital, while nine critically injured passengers were shifted to a hospital in Tumakuru city. In total, 21 people were injured in the mishap.

IGP (North East) B.R. Ravikanthe Gowda said that rescue and recovery operations were still underway. “The exact details regarding fatalities will be known after the bodies are recovered and identified,” he said.

Police said preliminary findings point to negligence on the part of the truck driver. The bus driver and cleaner managed to escape unhurt. Senior police officers from Chitradurga and Tumakuru districts were present at the accident site.

The blaze was later brought under control, but traffic on the busy highway remained disrupted for several hours, leading to a traffic jam stretching nearly 30 kilometres between the Bengaluru and Sira sections of NH-48.

Officials also revealed that a bus carrying schoolchildren on an academic tour, which was travelling behind the ill-fated coach, narrowly avoided being involved in the accident.

Authorities are in the process of retrieving the bodies, conducting post-mortem examinations and informing the victims’ families. Further investigation into the incident is ongoing.

With IANS inputs