Kurnool, Oct 24: The death toll in the devastating bus accident that occurred in Kurnool district has risen to 19, authorities confirmed.

According to reports, a private Volvo bus carrying over 40 people caught fire after hitting a two-wheeler in Andhra Pradesh's Kurnool in the wee hours of Friday.

The Volvo bus belonging to a private travel operator was registered in Odisha and was heading to Bengaluru from Hyderabad when it met with the accident near Chinnatekur village on the outskirts of Kurnool at around 3.30 a.m.

Police said 21 passengers survived as they managed to escape through the emergency door and broke glass windows to get out. A couple of passengers remained untraced.

The bus belonging to Vkaveri Travels had 43 people on board, including two drivers. The passengers included 10 women and two children.

The bus began its journey from Hyderabad around 10.30 p.m., and when it was close to Kurnool on National Highway 44 (NH-44), at around 3:30 am, a two-wheeler rammed into the bus. The motorbike got stuck under the belly of the bus and the sparks due to the bike being dragged and fuel leak from it caused the fire.

Survivors said the two-wheeler was dragged by the bus for about 300 metres. The fire started from the front portion of the bus where the bike was stuck.

Most of the passengers were asleep at the time of the accident. Survivors said the bus door had jammed which resulted in more casualties.

Also read: How 20 Escaped The Flame: Inside The Bus Fire Tragedy

According to officials, the deceased belonged to Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.

Andhra Pradesh Transport Minister M. Ramprasad Reddy visited the accident site. He said the state government would provide all help to families of the deceased.