The death toll in the bus fire accident that happened on National Highway 44 at Chinnatekur, a suburb of Andhra Pradesh’s Kurnool, has touched 20, according to local media reports. The bus, belonging to Kaveri Travels, was en route from Hyderabad to Bangalore when it collided with a two-wheeler before erupting into flames.
While authorities have yet to confirm the toll and other details, eyewitness accounts appearing in local media reports suggest that the fuel tank of the two-wheeler burst, triggering the blaze.
The fire reportedly broke out around 3:30 a.m. in the front portion of the bus. It quickly spread throughout the vehicle.
In a tragic incident several lives were lost when a moving private travels bus caught fire on the Kurnool highway in the early hours of Friday.
— SNV Sudhir (@sudhirjourno) October 24, 2025
According to preliminary reports, many feared dead, and over 30 passengers were on board the Bengaluru bound bus at the time of the… pic.twitter.com/cW2crEdyoj
A passenger on the bus, identified as Shiva, told Telugu channel NTV that almost all passengers were asleep when the incident happened. “The bus hit a bike and dragged it along for some time. The fuel tank of the two-wheeler exploded at that moment. Most of us learned about the incident only after the fire broke out. The emergency windows weren’t working, but some of us managed to break the windows and jump out,” he said, adding that there were children inside the bus.
He added that people struggled to breathe due to the smoke, which filled the bus.
As per unconfirmed reports, 12 passengers managed to escape and have been taken to a nearby hospital. Byreddy Shabari, MP of Nandyal, told reporters that the incident happened in minutes. "This bus caught fire in minutes. We could save about 19 people. They have been admitted to the hospital. We couldn't identify the rest of the people because their bodies were completely burnt,” she said.
CM Chandrababu Naidu expressed deep shock over the incident. The CM, who is on a tour in Dubai, supervised the rescue operations and ordered immediate medical assistance to the injured and assistance to the families of the deceased. The police have launched an investigation into the incident.
Entire family dies
The tragic fire claimed the life of a family from Nellore. As per local media, Golla Ramesh (35), wife Anusha (30), children Shashank (12), and Manyata (10), all from Gollavaripalli in Vinjamur mandal of Nellore district, died in the accident.
