KG students stranded aboard bus leaking fuel

BENGALURU: Parents of kindergarten students of Delhi Public School North panicked on Wednesday afternoon after they realised that the bus bringing back the kids was stuck at Nagenahalli Junction for over half an hour.

On reaching the spot, they were shocked to see the children sitting in the bus which was rapidly leaking fuel. The bus had around 35 kids on board and the driver and female assistant. All were safely evacuated.

On tracking the bus on the school’s mobile app, a few parents saw the vehicle was stationary for a long time and rushed there. Anupam Mukherjee, from Yelahanka and parent of a child onboard, said he got worried when his daughter didn’t come home at the regular time.

“My daughter usually comes home around 1.10pm, but we noticed that around 1.05pm the bus was stuck in the same place for some time. Since it was a short distance away, we rushed there and were horrified to see all kids in the bus which was leaking fuel. They were confused and scared. When we reached at 1.25pm, they were being evacuated,” he said.

The bus was parked to one side of the road, opposite a petrol pump, adding to the parents’ fears a stray matchstick or lit cigarette could have caused a major catastrophe. Parents received a message from the school at 1.32 pm, alerting them of a “mechanical issue” causing a delay.

Manju Balasubramanyam, principal, DPS North, said the fuel tank’s cap had come off when the bus hit a speed-breaker. “The bus driver heard a grating sound after which he halted the bus and alerted the school’s transportation team. It sent a message to parents and immediately sent a spare bus to take the kids to their drop-off points, It took some time to reach the spot from Bagalur Post. We understand the parents’ concern and the bus has been sent for repairs,” she said.