Bihar Disaster Management Minister Dinesh Chandra Yadav on Friday said his announcement that 27 people had died in a road accident in Motihari on Thursday was incorrect, ANI reported. He said there were no casualties in the accident. Yadav said his earlier announcement was based on information from local sources and that it was incorrect.

The bus had reportedly overturned and caught fire on NH28.

Defending his statement as an initial assessment, Yadav said: “But I also said only the final report will be considered.”

The minister said that 13 people were on the bus, and eight of them were treated for injuries after the accident. “There was no sign of the remaining five,” Yadav told ANI. “No remains were found. They may have left the spot on their own.”

The Bihar disaster management department also issued a clarification. “No human remains were found in the bus,” the department said in a statement. “Initially, it was believed that 40 passengers were aboard. As only eight to nine people were rescued, casualties were feared. However, a detailed investigation followed and no bodies were found.”

Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had announced compensation of Rs 4 lakh each for the kin of those believed to have died in the accident. “It is a really painful incident, local administration officials are present at the spot,” Kumar had told ANI. “We will extend all possible help to the families of those who died.”