Uttar Pradesh News: 5 Dead, Including 2 Children, As Double-Decker Bus Catches Fire In Lucknow (Video)

Lucknow: A horrific fire engulfed a sleeper bus near Mohanlalganj on Lucknow’s outer ring road (Kisan Path) early Thursday morning, leaving five passengers, including two children, charred to death. The double decker bus, carrying nearly 60 passengers from Bihar to Delhi, caught fire around 5 a.m. while passing through the Lucknow stretch.

According to passengers and eyewitnesses, smoke began to fill the moving bus, followed by flames that rapidly spread through the cabin. Panic erupted as passengers scrambled to escape, only to find evacuation hampered by structural obstructions near the driver’s seat. Several passengers were injured in the ensuing chaos.

Tragically, the bus driver and conductor reportedly abandoned the vehicle, leaving passengers to fend for themselves. The fire, visible from over a kilometre away, consumed the entire bus before fire services could fully respond. Nearby residents alerted authorities, and teams from PGI, Mohanlalganj, and Sushant Golf City police stations rushed to the site. ACP Rajneesh Verma led the rescue operations.

Despite rapid deployment of six fire tenders, the bus was reduced to a skeletal frame. Five charred bodies were recovered and sent for post-mortem. Initial investigations have revealed that the emergency exit failed to open, trapping those seated at the rear.

Shockingly, the bus was also carrying seven 5 kg LPG cylinders none of which exploded, but their presence raised serious safety concerns. The luggage and personal belongings of all passengers were completely destroyed. Among the deceased was a mother traveling with her young son and father.

The child survived, but lost his mother in the blaze. Survivors recall flames so intense they lit up the early morning sky. By the time firefighters arrived, the bus was engulfed beyond salvage. The tragedy has sparked questions about lax safety protocols and unchecked operations of private transport companies on interstate routes.

With no functioning emergency exit and alleged abandonment by the staff, the incident highlights glaring lapses in passenger safety.

Authorities are yet to comment on the presence of cooking gas cylinders and whether the bus had passed mandatory safety inspections.

Grief stricken families now await identification and post-mortem reports, while a probe is underway to determine responsibility for the deadly incident.

In a second deadly road accident on Thursday morning, a truck driver died after two sand-laden trucks collided and caught fire near Matiyari Chauraha on Faizabad Road in Lucknow. The crash, which occurred shortly after the fatal bus fire on Kisan Path, caused a major traffic jam in the area.

According to police reports, the trucks bore registration plates from Kanpur and Gonda. The impact triggered a fire that quickly engulfed the vehicles. The driver, identified as Vijay (45), sustained severe burns and succumbed to his injuries during treatment.

The cleaner, Ankit, was injured and rushed to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital for emergency care. Fire tenders reached the spot promptly to douse the flames, after which the damaged trucks were moved aside to restore traffic flow.

The accident has raised further questions about road safety, coming just hours after five passengers died in a sleeper bus fire near Mohanlalganj. Authorities are continuing investigations into both incidents to determine causes and possible lapses in safety compliance.