Tuesday, April 30, 2024
At least 14 people, including five of a family, have been killed and 15 others injured in a head-on collision between a bus and a pick-up van on the Dhaka-Khulna highway in Faridpur district.
The accident took place in the Dignagar area of Kanaipur under Sadar upazila on Tuesday morning.
“According to locals, a Magura-bound Unique Paribahan bus coming from Dhaka collided head-on with a pickup van coming from Alphadanga of Faridpur around 7:45am, leaving 11 people dead on the spot and five others injured,” said Faridpur Superintendent of Police (SP) Mohammad Morshed Alam.
The deceased from the same family were identified as Rafiq Mollah, 35, resident of Chhatrakanda village of Shekhar union under Boalmari upazila in Faridpur district, his wife Sumi Begum, 23, his sons Ruhan Mollah, 6, and Habib Mollah, 3, and Rafiq's mother.
Some of the other deceased were identified as Sonia, 25, wife of Milton Sheikh of Alfadanga upazila, Surya, 60, of Hidadanga village, Nazrul Islam, 35, son of Sirajul Islam of Kusumdi village, Tabibur Rahman, 60, son of Rashid Khan of Charbail village and Kohinur, 55, wife of Ameer Ali of Hidadanga village.
The identities of other deceased could not be known immediately. All the victims were passengers of the pickup van, confirmed Faridpur Sadar Kotwali Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Md Hasanuzzaman.
The injured were taken to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical College (BSMMC) in Faridpur. One of the injured died on the way to the hospital, while two others succumbed to injuries at the hospital.
On a tip off, local people, fire service personnel, highway police, and district police rushed to the spot and conducted rescue operations, said the OC Hasanuzzaman.
Faridpur Deputy Commissioner Md Quamrul Ahsan Talukder said, “A five-member investigation committee – headed by District Magistrate Muhammad Ali Siddiqui – has been formed to investigate the accident. The committee will submit a report within three working days.”
SP Alam said the district administration will pay Tk 5 lakh to the families of those killed in the accident, and Tk 3 lakh to the families of those injured. Tk 20,000 has been provided for the burial of the victims and Tk 10,000 in cash for treatment of the injured, he added.
