Nuh bus tragedy: Raging inferno, no emergency exit in ill-fated bus, recall survivors

Sanjay Yadav

Gurugram, May 18

It was a scene straight out of a horror story, with the ill-fated bus engulfed in menacing flames, and screams cutting through dark smoke rending the air. Sunita Sharma (55), a Jalandhar resident, shudders as she relives the trauma. Injured in the incident, she says there was chaos and panic as those aboard the bus struggled to get out of the inferno.

People jostled towards exit

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Around 2.30 am, smoke started spreading inside the bus. People jostled towards the exit to save their lives. We were shouting for help, but drivers of vehicles passing us did not stop. Sunita Sharma, a survivior

The situation was made worse by the realisation that there was no emergency exit in the bus and that they were stuck. After the fire broke out, the main door got jammed, and in an act of desperation, passengers tried to jump out the windows, which was not easy, says Sunita, visibly shaken.

“My uncle took us every year on a pilgrimage. After paying obeisance at Ayodhya, Varanasi and Vrindavan, we were headed back home. At around 2.30 am, smoke started spreading inside the bus, choking us. People jostled towards the exit to save their lives. We were shouting for help, but drivers of vehicles passing us did not stop. Finally, some people came to our rescue, and helped us jump out the windows. It was horrific,” she says.

Payal Sharma, who was also injured, was seeking information about her loved ones. “We weren’t aware of the fire. The bus suddenly filled with smoke,” she says, sobbing.

“There was no emergency exit in the bus. When we tried to open the main door, it was locked from outside. Not just young people, the elderly, too, had to make their way through the windows. I survived somehow, but have no clue about my family members,” says a distraught Payal. Even though the negligence of the driver has come to light, the complainant and tour organiser, Rakesh Kumar, terms it as an act of God. “We have been travelling to religious places by bus for the past 20 years. Nothing untoward has ever happened. But this time, perhaps God was angry,” he remarks.