School bus catches fire in Thailand, 25 feared dead

BANGKOK (Reuters) – About 25 people were feared dead in Thailand on Tuesday when a school bus carrying students and teachers on a field trip caught fire on the outskirts of the capital Bangkok, with 16 passengers hospitalised, the government said.

Firefighters work to extinguish a burning bus that was carrying teachers and students from Wat Khao Phraya school, reportedly killing almost a dozen, on the outskirts of Bangkok, Thailand, October 1, 2024. REUTERS/Chalinee Thirasupa
© Thomson Reuters

Police could not immediately confirm the number of injuries or deaths but Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul told reporters about 25 people were believed to have been killed, without elaborating.

Firefighters work to extinguish a burning bus that was carrying teachers and students from Wat Khao Phraya school, reportedly killing almost a dozen, on the outskirts of Bangkok, Thailand, October 1, 2024. REUTERS/Chalinee Thirasupa
© Thomson Reuters

Sixteen students and three teachers were sent to a hospital for treatment, Transport Minister Suriya Juangroongruangkit said, adding the causes of the incident were still be investigated.

Early images posted on social media and carried by local news outlets showed thick grey smoke pouring out of the bus, parts of which were still on fire.

The blaze was later extinguished. A Reuters photographer saw fire trucks, police and rescue vehicles parked around the blackened vehicle, with a cluster of firefighters at the entrance.

Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said the students were on a field trip from the province of Uthai Thani, about 250 km (155 miles) north of the capital.

Firefighters work to extinguish a burning bus that was carrying teachers and students from Wat Khao Phraya school, reportedly killing almost a dozen, on the outskirts of Bangkok, Thailand, October 1, 2024. REUTERS/Chalinee Thirasupa
© Thomson Reuters

“As a mother, I would like to express my deepest condolences to the families,” she said in a social media post on X.

(Reporting by Chalinee Thirasupa, Panarat Thepgumpanat, Chayut Setboonsarng and Panu Wongcha-um; Editing by Martin Petty)

Rescue workers extinguish a burning bus carrying teachers and students from Wat Khao Phraya school, reportedly killing almost a dozen, on the outskirts of Bangkok, Thailand, October 1, 2024. REUTERS/Chalinee Thirasupa
© Thomson Reuters

Firefighters gather around a burnt-out bus that was carrying teachers and students from Wat Khao Phraya school, reportedly leading to some on board being hospitalised, on the outskirts of Bangkok, Thailand, October 1, 2024. REUTERS/Chalinee Thirasupa
© Thomson Reuters