As many as 44 students, a teacherand the bus driver of a private school escaped unhurt even as the vehicle went up in flames near Alangayam town in Tirupattur district on Wednesday.
The police said that the bus was on the way to drop students at their homes after school. When it reached Sunnabupallam on the Alangayam-Vaniyambadi Main Road, K. Govindraj, 32, the driver, noticed thick smoke emanating from the engine. Acting swiftly, he stopped the vehicle, and directed the students to get down immediately. Within a few seconds after everyone got out, the vehicle went up in flames.
Residents of the area and passers-by alerted the fire and rescue services and police personnel from Alangayam. A fire tender rushed to the spot, and doused the flames. However, the bus was gutted in fire. School authorities sent all the students home on another bus. Police said that an electrical short circuit might have caused the fire. An investigation is under way.
