Collision leaves at least 30 dead in western India

A petrol tanker, lorry and bus collided today in western India, sparking a blaze that engulfed all three vehicles and killed at least 30 people, an official said.

The accident occurred on a highway about 40 miles south of Ahmadabad, the capital of Gujarat state, when a tanker carrying liquefied petroleum gas hit a truck head-on, igniting the fire, said fire brigade official Kalpesh Brahmbhatt.

The bus had been following closely behind the lorry and skidded into the flames, Brahmbhatt said.

Its driver and 23 passengers were killed, along with the gas tanker’s driver, his assistant and at least four people who had been standing nearby, Brahmbhatt said.

He said a number of other passengers – he was not sure how many – had suffered burns, some of them severe, and were being treated at nearby hospitals.