NEARLY 30 buses have been destroyed into twisted wreckage after a huge inferno ripped through a garage.
The blaze tore through the bus depot in Brazil burning down a total of 27 buses and unleashing chaos as flames engulfed the site.
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A huge fire destroys nearly 30 buses in Brazil Credit: itatiaia
The inferno continued to spread through the buses leaving nothing but skeletal, burnt out frames behind Credit: Corpo de Bombeiros
Thick, dense black smoke poured into the sky in the Viação Anchieta depot in Praça Edgar da Mata Machado.
The nightmare unfolded on the afternoon of Thursday with the alarm raised at 1:15pm.
Seven fire engines and 23 firefighters scrambled into action in a desperate battle to bring the raging flames under control.
But the inferno continued to spread through the buses leaving nothing but skeletal, burnt out frames behind.
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The devastating fire was reportedly visible from multiple points across the city – leaving terrified residents watching on in horror.
Roads around the scene were immediately shut down as the situation spiralled bringing traffic to a grinding halt.
According to witnesses and company employees, the fire is believed to have started in a wooded area near the garage before rapidly spreading and consuming the depot.
At the time the flames erupted, three workers – a security guard, a mechanic, and an electrician – were on site.
The blaze tore through the bus depot in Brazil burning down a total of 27 buses Credit: itatiaia
Thick, dense black smoke poured into the sky Credit: itatiaia
Despite the severity of the destruction, no injuries were reported.
Forensic teams from the Civil Police were called in as authorities launched an urgent investigation into the cause of the blaze.
The affected company operates several public transport routes across the city, raising immediate fears over disruption for thousands of passengers.
In a statement, the Union of Passenger Transport Companies of Belo Horizonte (SetraBH) rushed to back the company and insisted emergency measures were already underway.
Roads around the scene were immediately shut down Credit: itatiaia
Forensic teams from the Civil Police were called in as authorities launched an urgent investigation Credit: itatiaia
Chiefs said: “The emergency actions taken aim to ensure that any downtime resulting from the incident is promptly absorbed by the system, minimizing impacts on users.
“New information will be released in due course, as investigations and assessments of the damage caused by the incident progress,” the en
City officials confirmed that teams from the Municipal Mobility Superintendency (Sumob), alongside the operating consortium and SetraBH, are scrambling to assess the fallout.
City bosses added: “It is the responsibility of the operating consortium, represented by SetraBH, to guarantee compliance with the timetable and the regularity of operations.
“The consortium must use the reserve fleet and promote the reallocation of vehicles between companies whenever necessary to ensure service to users.”
The Municipal Department of Urban Mobility said it is closely monitoring the crisis.
Public transport operation teams have been deployed to support the Fire Department and Military Police at the scene.
