17 children escape narrowly as school bus catches fire in Rajasthan’s Jaisalmer
Police said the bus driver immediately stopped the bus and evacuated all the children safely before the flames engulfed the vehicle and burnt it completely
On Tuesday, seventeen children narrowly escaped a fiery ordeal after the school bus they were traveling in caught fire near Dhauwa village in Rajasthan’s Jaisalmer. Police reported that the bus driver promptly stopped the vehicle and evacuated all the children safely before the flames engulfed the bus entirely, reducing it to ashes.
None sustained injuries, but the bags, books, and other belongings inside the bus were destroyed. Emergency responders arrived swiftly, deploying three fire tenders to the scene. Preliminary findings suggest that a short circuit in the bus's wiring may have sparked the fire. Mahendra Kumar Sirvi, a local police officer, explained that the bus was en route from Pithla village to a private school situated approximately 12 kilometers away.
As the bus approached Dhauwa, its front wheel struck a pothole, leading to a short circuit, smoke emerged from the engine, and the bus eventually caught fire. Neighbors rushed to the spot, aiding the children in moving to a secure distance from the burning vehicle. In October of the previous year, a private sleeper bus traveling from Jaisalmer to Jodhpur met with a similar fate, resulting in the fatal loss of 19 passengers on the spot and one more succumbing to injuries upon reaching Jodhpur, raising the total death toll to 26.
The incident reignited debates surrounding fire safety protocols and emergency preparedness within the transportation sector.
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