Charter bus fire in Katy Freeway HOV lane near Fry Road snarls traffic

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A charter bus caught fire in the HOV lane of the Katy Freeway, sending passengers scrambling for safety.

The fire broke out at about 7 a.m., spewing thick black smoke into the sky near Fry Road.

The bus was less than 30 minutes into the nearly nine hour drive to Monterrey, Mexico. That's when a rear tire locked up, causing a fire, according to Captain Terry Thurman with Harris County Toll Road Authority's Incident Management.

There were 23 people on board at the time. Thurman said everyone got off the bus safely and no injuries have been reported.

"The fire department also went inside and did a secondary search to make sure everyone was safely off the bus, and their luggage, actually," said Thurman.

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Bus burns in HOV lane of Katy Freeway

Rush hour traffic was snarled in the area.

Bus from Houston to Monterrey catches fire, no injuries

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