A bus of the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation caught fire after colliding with a concrete mixer truck in Kottarakkara in Kollam district, injuring the passengers who were on board.

The incident occurred on Saturday afternoon at MC Road in Vayakal, which is part of the Kottarakkara municipality. The bus was almost entirely burnt due to the fire.

“Luckily, the injured passengers were able to get off the vehicle before the fire started,” an official from the Fire and Rescue Department in Kottarakkara told TNM.

According to primary reports, 12 people were injured. They have been admitted to various hospitals around Vayakal. The exact number of injured persons is not yet known.

When TNM contacted Vijaya Hospital in Kottarakkara, an official spokesperson of the institution said that at least 10 people had been brought there following the accident. “All have been taken to the emergency ward. We haven’t been able to take exact numbers, but some are said to have serious injuries,” the official said. A few have also been admitted to the taluk hospital in Kottarakkara.

Though Fire and Rescue officials stated that passengers managed to exit the bus before the blaze began, reports say that the driver and conductor were shifted to Thiruvananthapuram Medical College hospital with burn injuries. The two reportedly did not suffer severe burns.

The fire has been extinguished and officials are currently trying to find out the exact cause of the fire.