Seven people were killed and five others injured after a sleeper bus caught fire following a crash along National Highway 1 in Dong Nai City, southern Vietnam, early Monday morning.
According to local authorities, the 24-bed bus was travelling through Hung Thinh Commune, about 30 kilometres from Bien Hoa City, at around 2.30am when it veered off the road and crashed into an embankment.
The bus reportedly continued moving after the initial impact before hitting a second embankment and coming to a stop.
Moments later, flames erupted from underneath the vehicle and rapidly spread throughout the passenger cabin.
The driver, identified as Tran Thanh Hai, 41, shouted for passengers to evacuate, but the fire spread too quickly, trapping many inside the burning bus.
Firefighters from Dong Nai’s Fire Prevention, Firefighting and Rescue Police rushed to the scene with two fire engines and managed to bring the blaze under control after about 30 minutes.
Authorities later recovered the bodies of seven victims from the charred bus.
The five injured passengers were taken to Thong Nhat General Hospital for treatment. One of the victims, who sustained minor injuries, has since been discharged.
Authorities are investigating the cause of the crash and the fire.
