At least 20 children and teachers feared dead in Bangkok school bus fire

(AP) – A bus carrying young students and their teachers on a school trip caught fire Tuesday in a Bangkok suburb, leaving more than 20 dead, officials and rescue workers said.

The bus carrying 45 passengers, six teachers and 39 primary and secondary school students, was traveling from the central province of Uthai Thani when it caught fire in Pathum Thani province, a northern suburb of Thailand’s capital, the acting police commissioner said. Kitrat Phanphet.

The fire was first reported around noon and was put out less than an hour later, but rescuers said they were unable to board for hours because the heat inside the natural gas-powered vehicle could have caused more explosions.

Police were still working to identify the dead, but three teachers and 20 students remain missing, Kitrat said.

The cause of the fire was not immediately known. Kitrat said the initial investigation indicates that a tire exploded and caused sparks, which sparked a fire that spread throughout the bus. He did not give more details.

There were no other vehicles involved, he said.

There were discrepancies in reports about the number of people on board the bus. Rescuers quoted surviving teachers as saying that there were three school buses for this trip and that, along the way, some students had changed to different buses than the ones they had initially used.

Videos posted on social media showed the entire bus engulfed in fire with black smoke billowing from it.

Piyalak Thinkaew, a rescuer from the Ruam Katanyu Foundation, told reporters that most of the bodies were found in the middle and rear seats, leading them to assume that the victims had moved to the back and that the fire had broken out. started at the front of the bus.

Police were searching for the driver who apparently fled the scene, Kitrat said, adding that the bus company and the people involved could be charged if they are found responsible.

“Such an incident causes great pain and sorrow,” he told reporters at a news conference.

“There is no way for us to distort the facts or help anyone” escape justice, Kitrat said. He added that 16 students were treated for minor injuries and then sent home, while three others were hospitalized.

The nearby PatRangsit Hospital said three girls were initially treated there, one of them with burns to her face, mouth and eyes. Surgeon Anocha Takham said doctors would do everything possible to save the girl, who is around 7 years old, from losing her sight.

The girls were later transferred to other hospitals for further treatment.

Kitrat said a teacher who survived told police the fire had spread so quickly she didn’t even have time to grab her mobile phone. Some of those on board managed to escape through the door while others jumped through the windows.

Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra expressed her condolences in a post on social media platform He later visited the wounded in the hospital.

When reporters asked him about the fire at Government House, Paetongtarn became emotional and burst into tears. Paetongtarn became prime minister in August and is a mother of two.

The accident has sparked criticism about the safety of children traveling long hours across provinces on roads known for their high rates of traffic accidents and deaths.

The World Health Organization estimates that every year 20,000 people die and one million are injured in traffic accidents in Thailand.