Gurugram: A woman and her minor daughter were killed and over two dozen others sustained severe burn injuries after the sleeper bus they were travelling in caught fire on Delhi-Gurugram Expressway on Wednesday night, a senior police official said. The bus driver and helper have been identified by Gurugram police on Thursday.
Maya (28) and her daughter Deepali (5) died while 29 others were injured when a moving sleeper bus caught fire around 8:30 pm on Wednesday. During the inspection, it was revealed that some prohibited items were kept in the storage unit of the bus which caught fire. There are unconfirmed reports that there was a gas cylinder in the bus. Of the total injured, 11 were admitted to a civil hospital from where Mithlesh and Harish were referred to Delhi's Safdarjung hospital in critical condition, police said.
While the bus was completely gutted by the fire. A senior Fire department official said the fire was reported at around 8.30 pm near the Jharsa flyover on the main carriageway from Delhi to Jaipur. "Three fire tenders were rushed to the spot after we received information that a sleeper bus with registration number AR 01 K 7707 had caught fire on the carriageway," the senior official said.
By the time the fire was brought under control, two passengers were charred to death. Some other passengers sustained burn injuries, the official addded. Doctors treating the injured in Civil Hospital confirmed that seven of the injured are undergoing treatment at the facility.
"All injured have suffered 30 to 50 per cent burns but are stable," one of the doctors said. On information, Deputy Commissioner Nishant Kumar Yadav and Gurugram Police Commissioner Vikas Kumar Arora conducted spot inquires into the incident. Police are in the process of identifying the deceased.
