As many as 31 passengers travelling in a private Omni bus had a miraculous escape when the bus caught fire after hitting a two-wheeler at Attur here in the wee hours of Monday.
The bus was on its way from Chennai to Coimbatore on the Ulundurpet – Salem National Highway. While nearing Vattaparai village on the highway at 2.50 a.m., motorist M. Anand of Bhavani in Erode district entered the highway from the service road.
Injured
The bus driver T. Sundarrajan (57) of Kosavampatti in Namakkal district applied the brake, but the bus hit the motorcycle and Anand suffered injuries. In the impact, the bus caught fire and the driver alerted the passengers to get down. Fire spread to the entire bus and was completely gutted. Fire and Rescue Services personnel from Attur put off the fire.
While Anand was admitted to the Government Hospital in Attur, all the 31 passengers escaped unhurt.
