Bus fire kills 24, injures 42 in Chengdu

By Jane Chen  |   2009-6-5  |     ONLINE EDITION

A FIRE on a bus this morning killed 24 people in Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province, the provincial work safety supervision bureau said.

The authority is still checking the exact number of the casualties, the Xinhua news agency reported.

But according to earlier reports by Sichuan's local news Website newssc.net, 42 people were injured.

The No. 9 bus caught fire at around 8:30am near the city zoo in north Chengdu, the Xinhua report said. More than 10 people escaped from the bus.

Witnesses saw dense smoke cover the site, and several ambulances rush to the scene, where there was much evidence of blood.

According to the newssc.net report, the 42 injured are being treated at the Military General Hospital of Chengdu PLA. Sixteen victims are in the burns department, six in general surgery, six in hepatopancreatobiliary surgery, and 14 in the emergency department, hospital official Zhang Hujun said. Twenty-seven are in a serious condition.

The hospital had rushed more than 30 paramedics to the scene, Zhang said.