Mysterious fire burns down 11 CNG-run buses

Eleven luxury buses of a private operator stand gutted at Anandapur in Savar. An unexplained fire burned the CNG-run vehicles yesterday. Inset, charred interior of a bus.Photo: STAR

A fire at the depot of a luxury commuter bus service destroyed 11 CNG-run buses at Anandapur in Savar yesterday.
Fire Service and Civil Defence officials said two fire engines from Savar station at 8:15am were able to move 12 buses of Trans Millennium Company Ltd to safety and put out the fire after a two-hour effort.
No casualties were reported, the officials said.
Police termed the incident mysterious and locals claimed most of the buses that were destroyed were out of service. Wheels of five of the destroyed buses were missing while most of them had their engines removed.
Police and fire officials said the fire broke out around 6:30am and destroyed the 11 out-of-service buses.
"Cause of the fire could not be ascertained immediately," said a fire official. "Leakage in the gas line and a spark of a battery could have triggered the fire," the official said.
Trans Millennium Company Ltd Manager Bankim Chandra told reporters that they had 25 CNG-run AC buses running on Motijheel-Dhamrai route and 23 buses were in the depot yesterday while the other two were at a filling station.
Officer-in-Charge ABM Narir Ullah of Savar Police Station told The Daily Star that the bus operator was yet to file any case in this connection.