On February 27th, a tragic incident occurred when a school bus belonging to the Golden Childhood Kindergarten in Yanliu Town, Shouxian County, Anhui Province suddenly caught fire while in transit. The incident has garnered widespread attention from various sectors of society. Local funeral parlors have confirmed that they have received the bodies of three children. Currently, related reports from mainland Chinese media outlets have been systematically silenced.
A video from the scene shows the school bus engulfed in flames, with thick smoke billowing into the air, presenting a distressing sight that is hard to bear witness to.
Another video shows multiple children standing by the roadside with adults taking care of them, their gaze fixed on the bus engulfed in flames not far from them. In the footage, a man squats by the roadside, while a woman in a black and white top stands behind the burning bus, with the continuous sound of sirens from police cars and fire trucks in the background.
Local businesses near the Golden Childhood Kindergarten informed the Southern Metropolis Daily on the 28th that indeed a school bus from the kindergarten caught fire around 8 a.m. the previous day (27th) while on the way to school, with one shop owner mentioning that a child perished in the blaze.
According to information from the funeral parlors in Shouxian County, around 1 p.m. on the 27th, they did receive the bodies of three children, reportedly victims of the school bus fire that occurred in Yanliu Town at the Golden Childhood Kindergarten.
Mr. Shao, a father of a child attending the Golden Childhood Kindergarten, revealed to the media on the 28th that his 5-year-old daughter was on the bus at the time of the fire and unfortunately did not survive. He recalled that at around 8 a.m. yesterday, he sent his child on the bus, which caught fire while en route to pick up other children for school. “It was probably around 8:30 a.m.,” he stated.
Mr. Shao disclosed that the school bus used for picking up children for school was quite old, and according to eyewitnesses at the scene, the bus had experienced fire incidents before on the 27th. “When it caught fire the first time, the driver put out the fire and continued driving,” before the subsequent major fire occurred.
The relatives of the other two children confirmed that their daughters had also tragically perished, all around 5 years old. Multiple family members revealed that around 30 children were on the bus at the time of the fire. Following the fire, the driver and teachers managed to evacuate over 20 children from the bus, but unfortunately, three children were not able to exit in time.
A family member of one of the deceased children mentioned that on the morning of the 28th, several parents visited the Golden Childhood Kindergarten in Yanliu Town to inquire about the situation. They observed that the kindergarten was operating as usual, with the school buses visibly marked as having a maximum capacity of 19 people, and parents found an expired fire extinguisher on one of the school buses at the kindergarten.
As of the time of reporting, all related reports from mainland Chinese media outlets have been removed.
Public records show that the Golden Childhood Kindergarten in Yanliu Town, Shouxian County, Anhui Province was approved to operate by the Shouxian County Education Bureau in 2012. It occupies an area of 7,000 square meters, with a building area of 4,000 square meters and an outdoor activity area of 2,600 square meters. The kindergarten is equipped with standardized classrooms and supporting facilities and is classified as a demonstration (Level One) kindergarten in Huainan City.