Traffic disrupted after billboard lands on busy Dhaka street, one injured

A pedestrian has been injured after a billboard came off its base and fell on the street in Motijheel, Dhaka’s business hub.

Police and witnesses said the billboard fell down across the street from the Sonali Bank Limited headquarters around 4pm Sunday.
 
The accident left a man with minor injuries and a rickshaw damaged, Motijheel police OC Farman Ali told bdnews24.com.
 
The man was sent to the Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, he added.
 
The iron structure, which landed on the street, disrupted traffic towards Arambagh, Paltan and other areas from Shapla Chattar, one of the busiest intersections in the capital.
 
Police said they had contacted the Dhaka South City Corporation for removal of the billboard as soon as possible.

The bKash billboard was set up by Ad.frame, officials of BRAC Bank's mobile banking section said.
 
Local Ward Councillor Maminul Haque said the advert firm took permission from the city corporation, but did not follow the rules to set up the billboard.
 
"The heavy pipe was supposed to be set up with 10 feet of it under the ground, but they dug only six feet," he said.
 
He said a complaint against the ad firm would be lodged with police.
 
Chief of bKash's marketing section Asif Ahmed said Ad.frame told them after the incident that the billboard had no “structural weakness”.
 
The ad firm was liable for maintenance of the billboard, he said referring to the contract.
 
Ad.frame owner ‘Tipu’ told bdnews24.com the firm had around 150 such billboards across the country. 
 
"We maintain these following rules. But we can't say now why the accident occurred," he said.
 
He also said the firm would take responsibility for the treatment of those injured in the accident.