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Following a major fire triggered by the collision of a private sleeper bus with a motorbike on the Hyderabad–Bengaluru highway in Andhra Pradesh’s Kurnool district, the Andhra Pradesh and Telangana governments have set up control rooms and released helpline numbers to assist families of the deceased and injured.
At the time of writing this article, 21 out of 41 passengers were said to be safe. Of the 20 deceased, 11 were identified. Officials are searching for the driver of the motorbike.
The accident took place near Chinnatekuru village in Kurnool district around 3.30 am on Friday, October 24.
The government released helpline numbers for the kin of the deceased and injured to contact:
Control room in the Collectorate – 08518-277305
Kurnool Government General Hospital Control Room Number – 9121101059
Control room at the scene of the incident – 9121101061
Kurnool Police Office Control Room Number – 9121101075
Kurnool Government General Hospital Help Desk Numbers – 9494609814 and 9052951010.
The Telangana government has also established helpline numbers to facilitate the family members of the passengers in the accident. The Hyderabad Department of Protocol’s Director shall supervise the helpline.
M Sri Rama Chandra, Asst Secretary – 9912919545
E Chitti Babu, Section Officer – 9440854433
Police said one of the bus drivers was in their custody, while the main driver was yet to be found.
Kurnool SP Vikrant Patil told the media, "Around 3 am, the Kaveri A/C bus was going from Hyderabad to Bengaluru. A two-wheeler going in the same direction seems to have hit the bus, because we found a two-wheeler stuck in front of the bus. That’s where the fire seems to have started as per preliminary information.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Droupadi Murmu and several other political leaders expressed deep grief and shock over the bus fire. PM Modi has announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) to the next of kin of each deceased and Rs 50,000 to those injured.