A bus full of St Johnstone fans caught fire on the A9 on Saturday, with authorities unsure of the source of the blaze.
Emergency services attended a double decker bus fire on the A9 between Blackford and Auchterarder at around 9.30pm last night.
Dramatic images posted to social media showed the bus on fire surrounded by the football fans following Saturday’s match with Celtic.
Police said that five people were taken to hospital after the fire but none of the injuries were believed to be serious.
Firefighters were on the scene for two hours battling the shock blaze.
Traffic Scotland confirmed the A9 northbound off slip was closed to the A823 Gleneagles due to a vehicle fire at 10pm on Saturday.
The road remained closed into Sunday morning and drivers are advised to use an alternative route.
It is currently unclear what caused the St Johnstone bus fire.
Scariest thing of my life. Me, my son and my mate are still at hospital getting tidied up after smashing a window and jumping out!!! So lucky, the speed the bus caught fire and burned out was frightening
— Jayson Dempsey (@jaysdempo) November 21, 2021
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “We received a report of a bus fire on the A9 flyover near Auchterarder around 9.30pm on Saturday, 20 November.
“Officers attended to help with road closures, alongside the fire service and ambulance service.
“There were not believed to be any serious injuries and five people were taken to hospital as a precaution.”
‘Five taken to hospital’
A spokesperson for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said: “We were called at 9.30pm to reports of a double decker bus on fire on the A9 between Blackford and Auchterarder.
“Four appliances attended the fire.
“Two were sent from Auchterarder and Crieff and two were sent from Edinburgh control.
Last night our Bus had a blow out on the way home. The togetherness from each saints fan who shared that bus with us makes me so f¥ckin proud to be a Saintee. I hope all those hurt make a speedy recovery – thankfully no fracture to Hubby’s tibial plateau 🥺 Scary, scary shit! pic.twitter.com/7BnLfLQrff
— ☆🏆ҍҽեհ ǟʀʄǟօʊɨ🏆☆ (@B3thArfaoui) November 21, 2021
“One main jet was used as well as a thermal image camera.
“There were no casualties and all parties on the bus were accounted for.
“We received the stop message at 11.30pm.”
Writing on Twitter on Sunday, St Johnstone captain Liam Gordon appealed for information from fans following the bus fire.
He wrote: “A very tough one to take yesterday [the defeat to Celtic], hurting like mad today but that’s the highs and lows of football and life.
“I couldn’t be any prouder of this team, club and all the fans who turned out in their numbers.
“What an amazing feeling seeing you all back at a packed out Hampden.
“Now it’s time to dust ourselves down and focus on getting where we want to be in the league.
“The main reason for this message is a few pictures and videos came to my attention of a supporters bus that was up in flames after the game yesterday.
“My heart goes out to everyone involved and I’m praying that everyone is okay.
“Any update on the situation would be greatly appreciated.”
