A pregnant woman and her family had a narrow escape in Maharashtra’s Jalgaon district on Wednesday when an ambulance caught fire and led to a vast explosion minutes later, NDTV reported.
The windows of nearby houses were also reportedly shattered due to the explosion’s impact. None were reportedly hurt or injured in the incident. The video of the explosion has been going viral online.
The incident happened on a national highway near Jalgaon’s Dadawadi area. The ambulance was ferrying the pregnant woman and her family to Jalgaon district hospital from Erandol government hospital.
The ambulance driver spotted smoke emanating from his vehicle engine and disembarked immediately. He also asked his passengers to do the same and alerted people nearby to stay away from the vehicle. Minutes after the entire vehicle caught fire, it spread to the ambulance oxygen tank and led to a vast explosion. The loud bang of the explosion could be heard in the video.
Ambulance explodes in UP
A similar incident was reported in Pratapgrah district of Uttar Pradesh last month, reported The Times of India. An ambulance parked near a petrol pump caught fire, leading to a sudden explosion minutes later.
The driver, Vivek Gupta, spotted a sudden smoke from his vehicle and quit it through the back door as he could not find the reason for the sudden smoke. Gupta tried dousing the fire with the help of petrol pump employees but was unsuccessful.
The fire quickly spread to the ambulance’s oxygen tank and led to a sudden explosion. The incident left one passerby, identified as Amar Jaiswal (20), injured, who was later admitted to a nearby hospital.
Police said the ambulance was not attached to any hospital and was brought from Delhi to be operated as a private ambulance service.
