14 killed, 22 injured as bus catches fire in Andhra Pradesh's Markapuram

PTI, Mar 26, 2026, Rayavaram (Andhra Pradesh) : At least 14 passengers, including a five-month-old infant, were killed on Thursday after a private bus collided with a gravel-laden truck, triggering a massive fire here in Markapuram district, officials said.

Among the victims were five women. Most of the deceased were masons and those working in the construction sector.

As many as 22 passengers were injured in the blaze, a senior official further said.

“The toll touched 14 after accounting for the death of a five-month-old infant,” a police official told PTI, adding that the infant’s father died in the accident while its mother managed to survive.

The accident occurred between 5:30 am and 6 am near Rayavaram village on the road leading to Podili when the bus rammed into the concrete chips-laden dumper truck, colliding with its fuel tank, which sparked a massive inferno.

There were 41 people in the bus at the time of the accident and all the deceased persons were burnt to death, Home Minister Vangalapudi Anitha said.

Markapuram district in-charge superintendent of police V Harshavardhan Raju said the bus driver was at fault prima facie as he had allegedly veered on to the wrong lane and collided with the tipper.

“The bus has taken an opposite lane instead of sticking to its own lane. And the tipper was coming in the right lane. To avoid a collision, the truck driver had taken a right turn but the bus driver went and hit the vehicle,” Raju said.

“The impact was also in the middle at the diesel tank of the tipper. It is visible that the bus hit the truck,” he told reporters.

Besides the impact and diesel tank-powered blaze, he said the bus’ battery also caught fire.

He said the bus driver’s claim of the vehicle’s steering wheel getting stuck has to be probed further.

It was the passengers who suffered while the drivers of the bus and tipper are safe.

According to Raju, the tipper driver and cleaner are absconding while one bus driver is in police custody and the second in the hospital.

Raju said the bus driver responsible for the accident had taken the steering wheel only half an hour ago prior to the disaster while the other driver had driven from 5 pm on Wednesday till 5 am today.

The private bus was heading to Kaligiri in Nellore district from Jagtiyal in Telangana.

Nirmal District Superintendent of Police Dr G Janaki Sharmila told PTI that most of the deceased were masons and those working in construction field. They hailed from Andhra Pradesh and were returning back to their native places, she said.

DNA profiling was being done to establish the identity of the deceased, an official said.

President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu expressed grief over the incident.

“Deeply saddened to learn about the tragic bus accident in Markapuram district, Andhra Pradesh. I extend my deepest condolences to the bereaved families. My thoughts and prayers are with them. I wish a speedy recovery to those injured,” Murmu said on X.

PM Modi described the accident as “tragic,” and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh from PMNRF to the next of kin of each deceased person. The injured would be given Rs 50,000.

CM Naidu held a teleconference with senior officials and ministers, directing them to extend the best possible medical care for all the injured victims.

Naidu extended a compensation of Rs 5 lakh each to the kin of the deceased persons and Rs 2 lakh each to severely injured passengers. Further, Andhra Pradesh Cabinet conveyed its sympathies over the ghastly accident.

Ordering an investigation into the accident, Naidu offered his deepest condolences to the bereaved families and assured full support from the state government.

Telangana CM Revanth Reddy directed Chief Secretary Ramakrishna Rao to gather complete details about those who died and those who were injured in the accident.

The survivors recounted the horror of the early morning tragedy.

Several completely burnt bodies were laid on the road before being shifted into ambulances for further formalities.

The rib cage of one body was also visible, indicating the severity of the blaze.

Andhra Pradesh Transport Commissioner Manish Kumar Sinha, on the Markapuram bus tragedy, said the bus was originally registered in Lakshadweep and underwent some modification before getting registered in Arunachal Pradesh on December 24.

“I think 99 per cent it is an accident. All the bus documents are in order,” Sinha told the media.