Bus fire in Thailand: 25 feared dead in tragic school trip

The bus’s tire burst, causing the bus to crash into the guardrail. The bus was running on compressed natural gas (CNG) and the tanks ignited due to the accident. Soon the bus burst into flames.

A tragic fire broke out in a Bangkok suburb on Tuesday after a tire burst. The bus, which was carrying 44 people, was on a school trip from Wat Khao Phraya Sangkharam School in Uthai Thani province to Ayutthaya and Nonthaburi provinces.

On “As a mother, I extend my deepest condolences to the families of the injured and deceased,” she wrote.

How did the fire start?

The bus’s tire burst, causing the bus to crash into the guardrail. The bus was running on compressed natural gas (CNG) and the tanks ignited due to the accident. Soon the bus burst into flames.

Netizens shared the video footage on social media showing the bus engulfed in flames and thick black smoke billowing under an overpass.

The bus driver survived but escaped, and authorities are searching for him to learn more about the cause of the accident.

Ongoing efforts to extinguish fires

Of the 44 people on the bus, 16 students and three teachers were able to escape. However, about 23 other people, mostly students, are still unknown and rescuers fear they may have died in the fire. Many students were trapped in the back of the bus when the fire broke out at the front.

“The children’s instinct was to flee to the back so the bodies were there,” Piyalak Thinkaew, who is leading the search, told reporters at the scene.

Very small bodies were reportedly discovered, suggesting the victims were young children.

“Some of the bodies we rescued were very, very small. They must have been very young,” Piyalak added.

It took hours for the fire to be completely extinguished, delaying rescue efforts. Due to the intensity of the fire, it was difficult to identify the victims.

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