Bus-microbus collision leaves 13 dead in Narsinghdi

A head-on collision between a bus and a microbus on Dhaka-Sylhet Highway has led to the death of 13 and the injury of 28 in Narsingdi.

The accident occurred near the Darikandi area on the Dhaka-Sylhet Highway area around 8am on Sunday, police said.

The deceased have been identified as Manik Mia, 45, his wife Halima Begum, 26, sister-in-law Jumma Begum, 16, son ‘Isna’, 8, Manik Miah, 45, his wife ‘Mafia’, 35, son ‘Antor’, 10, Hira Miah, 25, Amena Begum, 32, ‘Jannat’, 35, and ‘Nazmul’, 10, and ‘Sharmin’, 18, and her son 'Rabbi', 3. They all hailed from Hatirchor village in Kishoreganj’s Nikli Upazila.

The bus was travelling from Bhairab to Dhaka, while the microbus was travelling from Dhaka to Kishoreganj. The two collided head-on around the Darigaon area.

“The microbus was reduced to a mangled heap of metal and 11 people were killed on the spot. Thirty others were injured,” said Belabo Police OC Badrul Alam.

Among the injured, Firoza Begum, 45, her son Maruf Hossain, 10, Sharmin’s son ‘Rabbi’, 3, Quamrunnahar Lipi, 50, and Kawser Miah, 32, were taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital. The others have been admitted to various hospitals in Narsinghdi and Bhairab, said local police Inspector Md Arifur Rahman.

Sharmin andg Rabbi died in the hospital.

Traffic on the Dhaka-Sylhet Highway was halted for two hours after the accident, but was returned to normal with the help of police, the fire service and locals said Inspector Arifur.

The district administration has pledged Tk 500 each in financial assistance for the burial of the deceased victims, said Narsingdi Additional District Magistrate Mozammel Haque.

Hundreds die in such road accidents in Bangladesh every year.

Bad roads, rash driving, poor visibility during winter due to fog and poor condition of vehicles leading to brake failure are said to cause most such accidents.