Hyderabad: Three persons were charred to death and several passengers injured after a private sleeper bus collided with an oncoming container lorry and caught fire near Sirivellametta in Sirivella mandal of Andhra Pradesh’s Nandyal district in the early hours of Thursday.

According to police, the ARBCVR Private Travels bus, carrying 36 passengers from Nellore to Hyderabad, suffered a sudden tyre burst around 2 am. The driver lost control, the bus crossed the road divider and rammed head-on into a container lorry coming from the opposite direction.

The impact triggered a massive blaze, completely gutting both vehicles within minutes. The bus driver, lorry driver and the lorry cleaner were trapped inside and died on the spot. Their bodies were charred beyond recognition.

A passing DCM truck driver noticed the fire, stopped immediately and smashed the bus windows, allowing passengers to escape by jumping out. More than 10 passengers sustained minor injuries, while four suffered fractures. All passenger luggage was destroyed in the fire.

Survivors recounted their ordeal, with one passenger saying, “We were in deep sleep. The DCM driver alerted us, broke the windows and helped us jump out. Otherwise, none of us would have survived.”

Nandyal district Superintendent of Police Suneel Sheoran said all 36 passengers were safely evacuated despite both vehicles being engulfed in flames. The injured were shifted to Nandyal Government General Hospital, where their condition is stable.

Police rushed to the spot, carried out rescue operations, cleared traffic congestion and registered a case. Further investigation is underway.