Luxury bus catches fire on highway in Navi Mumbai; no casualties

A luxury bus caught fire on a highway in Maharashtra's Thane district on Sunday, but all 22 passengers escaped unharmed after the driver alerted them to evacuate.

A luxury bus with 22 passengers on board caught fire on a highway in Maharashtra's Thane district on Sunday afternoon, with all occupants escaping unharmed, a fire official said.

The bus was in motion on the Sion-Panvel Highway when the driver noticed smoke coming from the engine and parked the vehicle on the roadside, alerting the passengers to evacuate, fire officer UB Akre of the Vashi fire station said.

''Two fire engines and one water bowser were rushed to the scene. Firefighters battled the blaze for about 30 minutes to bring it under control, after which cooling operations were initiated,'' Akre said.

The bus was completely charred in the blaze, he said, adding that no one was injured.

The official said that the cause of the blaze is yet to be ascertained, and a probe is underway.