Karnataka: The driver of the luxury sleeper bus involved in a deadly accident in Karnataka’s Chitradurga district has described the terrifying seconds leading up to the collision that claimed at least nine lives early Thursday.
Speaking from his hospital bed, Rafiq, who was driving the bus at the time, said he noticed a container truck approaching at high speed from the opposite direction near Hiriyur around 2 a.m. According to police, the truck crossed the road divider and struck the bus with such force that it burst into flames.
Rafiq told reporters he was driving at approximately 60 to 70 km per hour when he saw the truck veer toward his lane. He said he attempted to steady and steer the bus to avoid the crash but was unable to regain control. “I remember seeing the truck coming straight at us. I tried to manage the vehicle, but after the impact, everything went blank,” he said, adding that he has no recollection of how he was rescued from the burning bus.
He also mentioned that during the chaos, the bus brushed against another vehicle traveling alongside it, though he could not identify it due to the suddenness of the incident.
The bus cleaner, Mohammed Sadiq, who suffered minor injuries, said he was asleep near the front of the vehicle when the collision occurred. He recalled being flung out after the impact shattered the bus’s glass. “The truck hit the area near the fuel tank. The force was so strong that I was thrown out,” he said.
Police officials stated that the investigation into the cause of the accident is ongoing, with a focus on the truck’s movement and speed at the time of the crash. Several passengers managed to escape, but many were trapped as the bus caught fire following the collision.
