Up to 24 elderly evacuees die in bus blaze

A BUS carrying elderly evacuees from Hurricane Rita caught fire and was rocked by explosions early yesterday on a gridlocked highway near Dallas, Texas, killing as many as 24 people, authorities said.

"Deputies were unable to get everyone off the bus," Dallas County Sheriff's Department spokesman Don Peritz said. He said he believes 24 people were killed, but that number could change.

The bus, with about 45 people on board, had been travelling since Thursday. Mr Peritz declined to give details on who the passengers were except to say they were from a nursing home in Bellaire, an upscale enclave within Houston.