Bengaluru, Sep 15: A quick-thinking driver helped save all 75 passengers travelling in a BMTC bus, which was gutted by fire within minutes of the blaze being noticed.

The bus attached to the government-run Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) was gutted by fire on Monday morning. But thanks to the quick action of the driver, all 75 passengers escaped unhurt.

Smoke and flames started emanating from the moving bus, and within minutes, the fire engulfed the entire vehicle, destroying it.

According to police, the bus bearing registration number KA 57 F 4568 was travelling from Majestic to the Kadugodi locality in Bengaluru. The incident occurred near the HAL Entrance early in the morning.

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After noticing smoke and a small fire in the engine, the driver immediately alerted the passengers and conductor to evacuate the bus. The vehicle was fully occupied, but the driver and conductor ensured that all passengers disembarked safely. Even as the Fire Force and Emergency Services personnel rushed to the scene and extinguished the fire, the bus was completely gutted.

The incident took place within the jurisdiction of HAL Police Station, and BMTC has formed a team to investigate the exact cause of the fire.

A man was burnt alive when an abandoned school bus caught fire in the OMBR Layout of Banaswadi on August 14 in Bengaluru.

On November 15, 2013, a private-run luxury bus burst into flames after it rammed into the railing of a bridge on National Highway - 4 in the early hours at a village near Haveri district in north Karnataka. Seven people were killed in the mishap, including a couple and their three children. More than 25 people sustained serious burn injuries.

The police had registered a case of rash and negligent driving against the surviving driver and the bus operator under various sections of the IPC and the Motor Vehicle Act. The driver had fled from the accident spot and went missing. He was tracked and arrested later.

On December 2, 2014, a private bus caught fire in Bengaluru, and at least three people were injured. The accident took place in KR Puram and was recorded on a mobile phone by an eyewitness. The bus caught fire after it hit a motorcycle. [IANS/VS]

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