Days after a Bengaluru-bound bus caught fire killing at least 20 passengers, a victim's family narrated their ordeal after their daughter was killed in the blaze.
Among the victims was 23-year-old Anusha, a software engineer at Accenture in Bengaluru. Her parents, who had proudly sent her off after her Diwali visit home, are now consumed by regret, according to a report in NDTV.
“How I wish my daughter never got that job in Bengaluru," her father wept. “We saw off my daughter at the bus stand," he said, reliving the moment that turned from routine to heartbreaking. Her mother whispered, “I had told my daughter to extend her stay."
Another victim, Meghnath, had started working in Bengaluru just five months ago. His mother, refusing to accept the loss, sobbed at the site, “My son cannot go away like this."
20 people were killed and 20 others injured when the bus went up in flames after hitting a motorcycle on the outskirts of Kurnool district in Andhra Pradesh, said police.
“I boarded the bus at Nampally in Hyderabad to return to Bengaluru after Diwali. I was in a deep sleep when I suddenly heard a loud noise at around 3.30am. I noticed flames all around me and everybody was crying for help. I smashed the window adjacent to my berth and jumped out. Two others managed to escape with me,” said 31-year-old Aakash, a techie from Bengaluru.
Another survivor, MG Rama Reddy (50), who suffered burns and is undergoing treatment in Kurnool Hospital, recalled: “I was asleep when I heard screams. The bus was filled with thick smoke and fire. I couldn’t see anything. Someone pulled me out through the window.”
He said as soon as he came out, the entire bus was engulfed by flames. “People inside were burnt alive. We were taken to the hospital by a passerby and I fell unconscious soon after I was moved into the vehicle. I regained consciousness at around 6am and informed my family that I was safe,” Rama Reddy said.
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