Bus fire in India: Hundreds of smartphones went up in flames

A bus fire that killed at least 20 people in southern India was fueled by hundreds of smartphones on board, local reports said, citing forensics officials.

Flames quickly engulfed the Bangalore-bound bus after it collided with a motorcycle that ruptured its fuel tank and caused an explosion early Friday.

Eyewitnesses said around 40 passengers struggled to escape as locals rushed to pull out survivors.

Forensic experts have now told local media that the bus was carrying a shipment of 234 mobile phones and that the lithium-ion batteries they contained may have fueled the fire after bursting.

“Batteries in the bus, presence of flammable furniture in the bus and cargo consisting of mobile phones aggravated the fire leading to the tragic event,” Kurnool Superintendent of Police Vikrant Patel was quoted as saying by CNN News18.

Meanwhile, P. Venkataraman, Director General of Andhra Pradesh Fire Service, said the electric batteries used for the bus’ air conditioning system also exploded and aggravated the fire.

“We saw bones and ashes falling through the melted sheets,” he told local media.

The smartphones are worth 4.6 million Indian rupees (£39,361; $52,377) and were shipped from Hyderabad to an e-commerce company in Bengaluru, broadcaster NDTV reported.

Most smartphones have lithium-ion batteries, which can pose a fire risk when damaged.

This is because they can experience thermal runaway – an uncontrollable increase in temperature – which is difficult to stop with conventional fire extinguishing agents. It can also spread to other batteries in the immediate vicinity.

Authorities have launched an investigation into possible careless driving in the crash. The bus driver fled the scene. The motorcyclist is said to be among the dead.

Buses are a common form of transport in India, but operators often flout safety rules and overcrowd the vehicles, while the nation had the highest road death toll in the world last year.