5 killed in road accidents

At least five people were killed and eight others injured in separate road crashes in Cox’s Bazar, Natore and Noakhali districts on Saturday.

In Cox’s Bazar three people were killed and six were injured in a head-on collision between a bus and a pickup van at Aziznagar of Chakaria upazila Saturday morning.

The incident happened around 9am at the Aziznagar-12 bridge area on the Chattogram-Cox’s Bazar highway, said Khokon Rudra, sub-inspector of Chiringa Highway Police Outpost.

Two people were dead on the spot. The condition of the rest of the passengers is critical. The injured have been sent to Chattogram Medical College Hospital. The bus and the pickup van are in police custody.

The deceased were identified as Md Hamid, 29, Jahangir Alam, 25, and Nazrul Islam, 34, of Karmuhuri Para of the same union. The death toll is likely to rise. The deceased were passengers of the pickup van.

Confirming the incident Chiringa Highway Police Station OC Eamon Kanti Chowdhury said both vehicles are in their custody. After the legal process, the bodies of the victims have been handed over to their families.

In Natore, a college student died after a motorcycle collided head-on with a cattle-carrying locally customised vehicle, “Nosimon”, in Mougram area of Singra upazila in the district.

The deceased was identified as Cesar Sarkar, 18, a first-year student of Bamihal Rahmat Iqbal College, said Mizanur Rahman, officer-in-charge of Singra Police Station.

Cesar, who was riding the motorcycle, was critically injured in the accident. He was taken to the Upazila Health Complex where doctors declared him dead, said the OC.

In Noakhali, a man was killed and two others were injured in a road accident in front of Jamidar Bari area under Sonaimuri upazila of the district.

The deceased was identified as Md Belal Hossain, 47, son of Ali Ahmed, resident of Siladi village of Chhatarpaia union of the upazila.

The accident occurred, when a speeding pickup van hit a passenger CNG-run auto-rickshaw from behind in front of the Jamidar Bari area, the CNG fell into a roadside ditch around 8am, leaving Belal died on the spot and two others injured, officer-in-Charge (OC) of Sonaimuri Police Station Md Ziaul said.

Later, the injured were taken to a local hospital, the OC said.