Bus catches fire on Mumbai-Pune Expressway near Panvel, all passengers evacuate safely

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Passengers travelling from Udaipur to Pune had a narrow escape on Thursday morning after their private sleeper coach caught fire on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway near Panvel, officials said.

All passengers aboard the bus evacuated the vehicle safely after the fire broke out. No casualties were reported, police said.

Fire breaks out near Panvel

The incident occurred around 7.20 am on the Pune-bound lane of the expressway, within the jurisdiction of Rasayani Police Station.

According to preliminary information, the fire may have been caused by a technical fault in the bus's air-conditioning system, police said. The exact cause of the fire is yet to be established.

Firefighters rush to the spot

After receiving information about the incident, local fire brigade personnel and rescue teams from other agencies reached the spot and began firefighting operations.

Teams from the Panvel Municipal Corporation and Khopoli Municipal Council were also deployed to assist in containing the blaze.

The fire was subsequently extinguished, and the incident did not result in any injuries or casualties, officials said.

Fire breaks out on eighth floor of Goregaon residential building

In a separate incident, a fire broke out in a room on the eighth floor of a residential building in Goregaon West, Mumbai, on Thursday morning. No injuries were reported in the incident.

The incident was reported at around 6:20 am at Harmony Residency on New Link Road in Bhagatsingh Nagar No. 2, according to the Mumbai fire brigade.

The fire was confined to a room on the eighth floor of the G+8-storey building. Preliminary information indicated that the blaze was caused by a short circuit in an air-conditioning unit.

The fire brigade declared it a Level I fire at around 6:28 am and initiated operations to bring the situation under control.

Fire brigade personnel, police officials, the local electricity distribution company, a 108 ambulance team and BMC ward staff were mobilised following the incident. There were no reports of injuries. Authorities are expected to assess the affected room and surrounding area to determine the extent of damage.

(With inputs from PTI)