Moving bus goes up in flames in Noida; no casualties

A private bus caught fire in Noida due to a suspected short-circuit; no passengers were on board. The blaze was extinguished with no casualties reported.

Noida: A private moving bus caught fire on Noida’s Maharaja Agrasen Marg next to the Elevated Road from Sector 18 to 62 on Monday afternoon, police officers said, adding that a short-circuit seems to have sparked the blaze and there were no passengers in the bus when the fire broke out.

The bus was heading towards Sector 18 from the Nithari side when the incident took place. (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photos)

Officials said the fire was extinguished within an hour and there were no casualties reported.

“On Monday around 3.45 pm, a passerby contacted police on emergency helpline number 112 and informed that a fire had broken out in a private moving bus next to Elevated Road pillar number 1, close to a private school in Sector 28,” said a police officer, requesting anonymity, adding that the fire control room was immediately alerted and two fire tenders reached the spot.

“As we received the information, two fire engines were dispatched and the fire was controlled before it could engulf the entire bus,” said Chief fire officer (Gautam Budh Nagar) Pradeep Kumar Chaubey.

Police said that before they reached the spot, the bus driver had fled, leaving the bus. “It is suspected that the fire broke out due to a short circuit. However, further investigation is underway to identify the cause behind the incident,” said the officer.

The bus was heading towards Sector 18 from the Nithari side when the incident took place.

Due to the incident, traffic also crawled on Maharaja Agrasen Marg as two out of one lane was blocked. Subsequently, the bus was towed away two hours after the incident, police added.