Bengaluru: 21 buses gutted as fire breaks out at Banashankari garage

According to officials, 42 people were working at the SV Coach garage when the fire broke out. Two fire tenders were pressed into service to douse the blaze

At least 21 buses were gutted after a massive fire broke out at a private garage in Veerabhadra Nagar near Banashankari in Bengaluru on Monday. No casualties have been reported so far.

For representational purposes only. (AFP File Photo)

According to officials, 42 people were working at the SV Coach garage when the fire broke out. Two fire tenders were pressed into service to douse the blaze, they said.

“The incident occurred around 10:45-11am. We smelt something foul and saw the fire coming from a bus when we went tracing it. Then it spread to other buses. Around 40 workers got scared and ran out of the garage. But we did manage to save 5-6 buses,” an eyewitness told reporters.

“One of my buses which met with an accident was at the garage for repair. The bus had not been fixed for six months. Today, I was informed about this incident,” a bus owner said.

Officials suspect that a short circuit could have sparked the fire. “The workers were fixing one of the emergency exits of a bus, and the fire spread to other buses parked near it. However, the cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained,” a fire department official said.