44 killed in India bus crash inferno

[webfact]

44 killed in India bus crash

HYDERABAD: -- A fierce blaze on board a bus triggered by an exploding fuel tank killed at least 44 passengers in southern India early Wednesday, police said.

The fire broke out after the bus crashed into a central reservation on a highway between the cities of Bangalore and Hyderabad around 5:00 am, said local police spokesman Venkateshwarlu.

"The number of dead, which includes children, is 44," Venkateshwarlu, who uses only one name, said.

Out of 49 people on the bus, five, including the driver and the bus cleaner, broke windows and escaped before the flames engulfed the vehicle, killing the rest, police said.

"The driver and the cleaner tried to run, but the police caught them and they are now in our custody for questioning," said Venkateshwarlu, adding that the three others were taken to a local hospital.

A total of 131,834 people died in road accidents in India in 2011, according to the government's National Crime Records Bureau, which works out at 15 an hour.

Full story: http://voiceofrussia.com/news/2013_10_30/44-killed-in-India-bus-crash-8040/

-- THE VOICE OF RUSSIA 2013-10-30

[Scott]

I will complain a little less about Thailand after reading that.

[mithunonthenet]

I will complain a little less about Thailand after reading that.

Before you do, know that the reason why so many people died is because many of them couldn't escape out of the bus. It was a Volvo bus and its central locking prevented the doors and the windows from opening. Of course, it didn't help the cowardly cleaner and driver bailed.