This handout picture taken an released on March 10, 2026 by the Canton of Fribourg shows the main street of the small town of Kerzers where a bus caught fire. (Photo by Handout / Etat de Fribourg - Staat Freiburg / AFP)
Geneva: A bus fire that killed at least six people in western Switzerland was likely ignited deliberately but probably not as an act of terror, police said on Wednesday.
The fire broke out on the bus in the main street of the small town of Kerzers, around 20 kilometres (12 miles) west of the Alpine nation's capital Bern, at about 6:25 pm (1725 GMT) Tuesday.
Videos shared on social media showed flames several metres high bursting out from the windows, and black smoke rising into the sky.
In an interview on Wednesday with Swiss national broadcaster RTS, Fribourg Canton police communications chief Martial Pugin confirmed that while "an intentional act is the most likely scenario", "at present there is no evidence" it was a terror attack.
Fribourg cantonal police spokesman Frederic Papaux had told AFP on Tuesday evening that the fire "left at least six dead and five injured, three of them seriously".
He, too, said that the evidence pointed to the fire being deliberate, but would not be drawn on speculation that the tragedy was a suicide.
The police were unable to confirm how many passengers were aboard at the time of the blaze.
Melted tar
Several ambulances and a helicopter were sent to the scene, with investigators working late into the night, and three injured people were taken to hospital.
According to Pugin, two of them were in a grave state, while the third "was able to return home in the night".
Two other people were examined on site but did not need hospital treatment.
By early Wednesday, the charred husk of the bus was removed from the roadway, leaving a few traces of melted tar on the ground and a faint smell of burning.
A hotline has been opened for witnesses to come forward, as authorities try to determine the exact circumstances of the fire.
The authorities have scheduled a press conference for Wednesday at 2:00 pm (1300 GMT) at the cantonal police headquarters near Fribourg.
Fribourg police said a criminal investigation had been opened by public prosecutors.
'Terrible tragedy'
It is the second major multiple-casualty fire in Switzerland in less than three months.
In the early hours of January 1, a bar in the ski resort of Crans-Montana caught fire as people celebrated the New Year. A total of 41 people died, with another 115 injured.
"I am shocked and saddened that people in Switzerland have once again lost their lives in a serious fire," Swiss President Guy Parmelin said on X.
"The circumstances are being investigated. I would like to express my condolences to the families of those who died in Kerzers. My thoughts are also with the injured and the emergency services."
The bus involved was a PostBus, a feature of Swiss rural life.
The distinctive yellow buses serve more remote areas, connecting them with towns, while carrying letters and parcels.
They are used by around half a million people every day, notably schoolchildren.
"It is a terrible tragedy that occurred yesterday in Chietres. Like me, all the employees of PostBus and Swiss Post are shocked," Stefan Regli, the CEO of PostBus, said in a statement.
