BREAKING: National Express bus sets fire on Westwood campus

Image: Anonymous Warwick student

A bus operated by National Express “exploded” and caught fire on Lynchgate Road at the University of Warwick this evening.

A witness said the bus had just passed Westwood campus and that that the fire looked like an “explosion”. It is unsure whether the bus was following the 11 or 12X routes frequented by Warwick students.

One witness said: “Smoke was coming out of basically every hole it had, and it smelt really strong of like fireworks.”

According to reports, the fire happened around 4.20pm.

It is unconfirmed whether anyone was injured as a result of the fire.

Photos provided to The Boar show clouds of smoke leaving the bus, which is parked by a bus stop on campus.

In October 2018, a National Express bus caught fire on campus. Eye witnesses suggested that the fire was as a result of an exploding tire.

UPDATE (9:50am 10/01/2020): A National Express Coventry spokesperson said: “At around 16:00 on Thursday 9th January, a National Express Coventry bus caught fire near Cannon Park shops.

“Nobody was hurt and all passengers were swiftly evacuated from the vehicle by our driver.

“West Midlands Fire Service attended the scene and we will be carrying out a full investigation into the cause of this fire.

“We’d like to apologise to our customers for any inconvenience.”

The University of Warwick commented to The Boar: “We are aware of a fire on a bus on Lynchgate Road after 4pm yesterday and that the fire service were quickly on the scene. The bus was safely evacuated and we are not aware of any reports of injuries.”

Updates will follow.