Explosion of New Mobile Phones Intensified Fire: Officials
The fire-fighters, who examined the vehicle after extinguishing flames, found more than 100 new mobile phones that were damaged after exploding due to severe heat
Hyderabad: The second contributing factor that led to the Kurnool bus fire incident was the explosion of brand new mobile phones kept in the baggage space beneath the rear seats, said officials of Andhra Pradesh Fire Department.
The fire-fighters, who examined the vehicle after extinguishing flames, found more than 100 new mobile phones that were damaged after exploding due to severe heat. “We were surprised to see the damaged spare parts of the handsets of a particular brand beneath the rear seats,” Andhra Pradesh Fire Services Department officials said.
These handsets were kept in the baggage space probably to deliver them to a client in Bengaluru. The explosion of handsets could have intensified the flames in the vehicle. Apart from handsets, the electrical batteries fitted in the vehicle for ACs and other purposes also exploded in the bus. Such was the impact of the fire that the aluminum sheets on the floor were completely melted.
“We noticed bones and ashes falling from the melted aluminum sheets beneath the bus,” officials explained. They said the bus first caught fire after fuel leakage from the bike that came in the opposite direction and got trapped below the front portion of the bus.
The fuel leakage from it likely ignited due to sparks or frictional heat, resulting in a fire engulfing the passenger compartment. They further stated that the light aluminum material was used for manufacturing the bus instead of iron metal. Using aluminum material would certainly reduce the weight of the vehicle and it would eventually help in increasing its speed.
