12 die after bus catches fire in Nashik: Most victims were on way back from Dussehra festivities

At the time of the accident, in the night, Kalyani was sleeping with her grandmother, Laxmibai Mudarkar. When the fire broke out, the 50-old-year woman couldn’t rush out with her weak knees and got stuck with the child inside the bus.

“When the fire brigade discovered their body, they found that my mother had used herself as a shield to protect my daughter from the fire. But she still couldn’t save Kalyani, who was burnt alive,” said Akash.

‘Teen son was the sole breadwinner’

Ajay Kuchankar, 16, shouldered the responsibility of his family when he was only 14 after his father abandoned them. At such an early age, he quit his studies and landed in the financial capital of Mumbai to earn a livelihood for his family, comprising his ailing mother and a young sister.

Ajay Kuchankar was also saving money for his sister’s marriage.

“He came home for Dussehra celebration. I made him his favourite food,” said his mother Durga Kuchankar , crying on the stairs of the hospital. Other than providing for his family, Ajay was also saving money for his sister’s marriage. “He was the most responsible son who always prioritised his family,” said Durga.

‘I didn’t want to die, leaving my family alone’

After his morning duty, Dipak Shinde (40), the second driver of the bus, cooped up in the upper cabinet above the driver’s seat at around 12 midnight on Friday. Past the early hours of dawn, a sudden boisterous thud woke him up, only to find that the bus was on fire.

Within six hours, by 5.30 am on Saturday, the inter-district bus caught fire after hitting a truck transporting diesel on the Nashik-Aurangabad highway.

Dipak Shinde helped injured passengers jump out of the bus.

“Due to the collision, the front portion of the bus was completely smashed, and I got stuck above in the cabinet. Within a few seconds, I saw that the bus was on fire, which further added to my panic as I didn’t want to die, leaving my family alone,” said Shinde.

Somehow, Dipak managed to climb down from the cabinet but he started bleeding profusely from his head and felt dizzy. When he looked around, he couldn’t find the driver. “His body might have been caught up in the wreck, so I couldn’t see him,” he said at the Nashik district Hospital, where he is being treated after sustaining fractures in his left hand and head .

Soon, he heard cries for help and to his horror, he found some of the passengers on fire. He broke a glass window and helped two to three injured passengers jump out on the road. Then he saw that rear part of the bus was also on fire, with the flames blocking the exit gate.

“I think, due to the collision, the diesel that leaked on the road caught fire, which gradually engulfed the bus from behind,” he said.

With no other option, he said he had to leave the remaining passengers in the burning bus and jump off.

‘Decision to not book an AC bus saved us’

Sachin Jadhav, a resident of Thane’s Badlapur, always avoids travelling in buses at night. But he couldn’t get confirmed train tickets, forcing him to travel in the bus with his wife. But he said he was thankful that he didn’t book an air-conditioned bus, in which breaking the vehicle’s windows during a fire
incident would have been way tougher.

The couple had gone to their hometown in Yavatmal for Dussehra. He had taken 15 days of leave from his construction company. But after his boss had a medical emergency, Jadhav had to cut short his vacation and return early. This didn’t leave him much time to book train tickets in advance.

Sachin Jadhav took the bus because he couldn’t get train tickets.

“My boss called suddenly, asking me to return as he had to admit his mother to a hospital for a medical emergency. As I couldn’t confirm train tickets in time, we took the bus to Mumbai,” he recollected as he underwent treatment at the Nashik Civil Hospital. “I hate travelling in buses at night as it makes me anxious, the way the drivers drive late at night,” he added.

At dawn, Jadhav and his wife, who were sleeping, suddenly woke up with a jolt. He saw fire sparks from the front of the bus, which soon spread across the vehicle.
“Before I could understand what was happening, passengers from the front seats were on fire. So, I broke the side window, pushed my wife outside and jumped off,” he said.

‘I saw two passengers on fire’

Despite his weak knees, Bhagwan Manwar (65), jumped in amid the flames to save lives when the bus was almost engulfed in the fire.

The Yavatmal resident was on his way to visit his son, Prakash Manwar, who stays in Mumbai’s Andheri.

Bhagwan Manwar helped passengers get out of bus

He was seated on seat number 19, far from the front side of the bus. When the bus collided with the truck, he woke up to see that the front passengers were on fire.

Manwar quickly covered his hand with a cloth and broke a window. “I helped three to four people get out of the window and before I could help others, the fire had spread,” he said.

“I saw two passengers on fire, who got stuck in their seats,” Manwar said.

Later, he jumped out of the window, sustaining fractures in one hand. “I wish I could save more lives. I will never be able to forget such a horror,” he said.