Kurnool: Preliminary investigation into the Kurnool bus accident has suggested that the lithium batteries of mobile phones cargo may have aggravated the inferno.
Speaking to NewsMeter, Kurnool Superintendent of Police, Vikrant Patil, said that the bus had a cargo parcel containing mobile phones worth Rs 40 lakh. “Forensic teams are investigating whether these combustible materials could have aggravated the inferno. Usually, cargo parcels are not allowed on a passenger-bound bus. We are also talking to the Transport Department on how to proceed with the case,” he said.
A total of 16 special teams are investigating the tragic bus accident in Kurnool from all possible angles.
In one of the deadliest road accidents in Andhra Pradesh, a private sleeper bus bound for Bengaluru from Hyderabad killed at least 19 people and left several others injured, four of them critically, at Chinna Tekuru village in Kalluru mandal of Kurnool district on Friday morning, October 24, 2025. Twenty-seven people escaped the inferno.
The ghastly road tragedy occurred at around 3 a.m., when the bus, at high speed, ran over a motorbike. Preliminary findings suggest the Kaveri travels bus dragged a motorcycle for some distance, leading to the accident. The two-wheeler, believed to be with a full tank of fuel, was trapped beneath the bus, dragging along the asphalt for nearly 300 metres. Police said petrol leaking from the bike’s tank and possibly also from the bus’s fuel tank, combined with friction sparks from the road, ignited an inferno that rapidly gutted the bus.
The bus was carrying 44 persons, including 40 adult passengers with four children. Police confirmed that 27 persons, including two drivers and 25 passengers, managed to escape, while 19 charred bodies were retrieved from the gutted bus.
Speaking to the media in Kurnool on Friday evening, Andhra Minister for Home Vangalapudi Anitha said that immediately after receiving the alert, police and fire department personnel rushed to the spot and began rescue operations. Home Minister said that the bus had a valid All India permit and fitness certificates, but was carrying combustible materials inside the sleeper coach.
As the parcel contained more than 400 mobile phones, there is a suspicion that all the batteries exploded at once due to the high heat. The fire spread to the passenger compartment in the upper part of the luggage cabin, leaving them no time to escape. In general, the upper part of mobile phones is made of plastic, and the batteries are made of lithium, which can explode when they catch fire.
She said that among the deceased, six are from Andhra Pradesh, nine from Telangana, one from Odisha, one from Bihar, two from Tamil Nadu, and one from Karnataka, while one body is yet to be identified. “The identification of victims will be confirmed through DNA testing, and the bodies will be handed over to their respective families,” the Minister said.
The Minister said that out of 16 expert teams, 10 teams are handling DNA tests, four are conducting physical and blast analyses, and two teams are working on chemical analysis to determine the cause of the accident.
According to the officials, the newly introduced buses are equipped with modern safety features, including a fire alarm system. However, since the ill-fated bus was seven years old, it lacked such equipment.
The two drivers – Miryala Lakshmaiah and Gudipati Siva Narayana – of the ill-fated private bus have been taken into custody. The Ulindakonda police have registered a case under Section 125 (a) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Samhita (carelessly endangering human life or personal safety) and Section 106 of the BNS (causing death by negligence).
