A major disaster was averted when motorists noticed smoke coming out of the rear luggage chamber of a bus plying between Chennai and Peravurani when the vehicle reached Chrompet at around 11.30 pm.
The bus (PY 01 BC 8889), run by Sri Bhagyalakshmi travel service, had left Koyambedu with 25 passengers.
When the bus reached Chrompet with most of the passengers asleep in the berths, other motorists on GST Road saw smoke emanating from the luggage chamber in the rear of the bus.
The shocked motorists drove past the bus and warned the driver about the smoke.
The driver stopped the vehicle on the side of the road and asked the passengers to alight immediately.
Some onlookers had also informed the local police about the incident.
The bus crew immediately opened the rear luggage chamber and found that the smoke was caused by acid cans stocked up in the chamber.
“The cap of one of the cans had opened and the acid was spilling around causing smoke to come out of the chamber. It also created a burning smell. If the other drivers had not noticed it could have turned into a major disaster,” the police said.
The spilt acid had also damaged the luggage of passengers.
The police said that the crew should not have agreed to transport such items in the bus and should have kept the safety of passengers in mind. The passengers later boarded other buses to reach their destinations.
“We have detained the driver of the bus and also the manager of the travel agency,” the police said.
“Usually, the short circuit in air conditioning systems causes fire in buses.
However, this kind of emergency situation is rare. The bus crew should be very careful the things they transport,” the police said.