The Volvo bus fire in which 45 people were charred to death at Mahbubnagar four months ago was the result of poor design and absence of safety measures in the bus, Crime Investigation Department (CID) officials have found.
The main fuel tank of 300 litres capacity and the battery compartment of the bus were close to one another in the front. When the battery compartment got ignited, the fire spread from the main fuel tank. Two auxiliary fuel tanks of 150 litres each were also situated close the main fuel tank, causing the fire to spread rapidly, officials said.
According to them, as soon as the bus hit the culvert, one end of an iron pipe pierced the floor of the bus, while the other pierced the fuel tank. “The fuel spilled into the bus and the fire spread rapidly,” said Additional DG, CID, Krishna Prasad, at a press conference on Wednesday. “The emergency doors were blocked by passenger seats foreclosing all escape routes.” Besides, five additional seats had been installed against a capacity of 46. The probe revealed that after the accident, owners Jabber Travels and Diwakar Road Lines created a false document of GPA and lease agreement.
