Three APSRTC buses parked in Vijayawada depot on the premises of Pandit Nehru Bus Station (PNBS) here were damaged, while one of them was completely gutted in a fire on Tuesday afternoon.
The cause of the fire is yet to be known. There were none in the depot as all the employees were out on Samaikyandhra agitation that began in the early hours of Tuesday.
“Short-circuit might be the reason for the fire, but an investigation is on to get to the bottom of the cause of fire,” said the APSRTC Regional Manager Sudesh Kumar. The loss incurred due to the fire is said to be between Rs. 5 lakh and Rs. 6 lakh. According to the Depot Manager Naga Seshu, about 120 buses were parked in the depot. At around 2.20 p.m., the outsourced workers engaged in cleaning works told him that flames were emanating from a super-luxury bus. “The driver’s cabin and the interior parts were completely burnt and before the flames could reach other vehicles, the staff members drove them to safety,” he said. Meanwhile, the APSRTC Employees’ Union zonal secretary Y. Venkateswara Rao said that the cause of the fire was electrical short-circuit. “The vehicle parts are made of fibre, hence the fire spread very fast,” he said.
