Road crashes leave 22 dead in several Bangladesh districts

At least 22 people have died in road traffic accidents throughout Bangladesh.

The deaths were reported in Gopalganj, Tangail, Sirajganj, Rajshahi, Pabna, Chittagong, Bogra, Dhaka and Rangpur districts on Thursday.

Ten of the 22 dead in these accidents were riding microbuses. Fifteen people died in road crashes on Wednesday.

Rangpur

Two buses collided head-on at Beltali in the district's Taraganj Upazila around 11:15pm, leaving three dead and at least eight injured, Taraganj Police Station OC Abdul Latif Mia said.

The deceased are a passenger, the supervisor and the driver's assistant of a Hanif Paribahan bus. A Dhaka-bound Asia Paribahan bus from Thakurgaon hit it, the OC said.

The injured were admitted to local hospitals, he added.

Pabna

Two friends who were on a motorcycle died instantly when they were hit by a bus on Rajshahi-Pabna Highway in Ishwardi. 

Md Shipon, 22, and Ashraful Islam, 24, were headed to Pakshi for an Eid hangout.

The bus coming from the opposite direction hit them at Sheikhpara of Muladuli, said Ishwardi Police OC Abdul Hye.

The bus drove off and the witnesses were not sure which transport company owns it, said the police official.

The bodies of the young men were taken to Pabna General Hospital for autopsy. 

Gopalganj

Five passengers of a microbus and its driver were killed when it collided head-on with a Sheba Green Line bus at Gerakhela of Kashiani Upazila around 10am Thursday.

Of the six killed, five belonged to a family from Bagerhat's Soronkhola Upazila, said Kashiani Police Station OC AKM Ali Noor Hossain.

The family had hired the microbus from Dhaka's Shahjalal International Airport to bring home Saudi Arabia expat Halim Akon, 40, who had returned home for Eid.

He died on the spot along with his wife Asma Begum, 35, sons Sujon, 17, and Shihab, 8, and brother-in-law Badsha Farazi, 37. The driver is yet to be identified.

Ten have been injured in the crash and were being treated in hospitals in Moksedpur and Kashiani Upazila.

Tangail

Two women who were taking a walk at Tangail's Dhanbari died after being run over by a microbus on Thursday morning. Another woman has been injured in the incident.

The three were walking on the pavement of Tangail-Jamalpur Highway at Nijborni, said Dhanbari Police OC Mojibur Rahman.  

A microbus, headed to Jamalpur, crashed into the pavement killing Reba Begum, 32, of Nijborni, and Sahaton, 50, of Belutia.

One died on the spot and the other was declared dead at Modhupur Upazila Health Complex, said OC Mojibur.

Obaida Begum, 40, was taken to Mymensingh Medical College Hospital with injuries.   

Sirajganj

Three members of a family, and the driver of the microbus they were in, died after being hit by a bus at Sirajganj's Raiganj.

Two more have been injured in the crash on Hatikumrul-Bogra Highway around 2am Thursday, said Hatikumrul Highway Police OC Abdul Kader Zilani.

The family members from Bogra's Kahalu were headed to Dhaka to pick up Malaysia-based migrant worker Harunur Rashid from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport.

The dead victims are Harunur's father Solaiman Hossain, 65, his wife Lili Akter, 35, son 'Sagar', 12, and Abdul Khalek, 32, the microbus driver from Pabna's Bera.

Harunur's other son 'Sobuj', 18, and nephew Monsur Rahman, were injured.

The microbus suffered a head-on collision with a bus coming from the opposite direction, said OC Zilani.

Three died instantly and the microbus driver died while he was being taken to hospital by fire service personnel.

Rajshahi

Two men riding a motorcycle at Puthia died after being run over by a truck around Thursday midnight.

'Tushar', 3o, and 'Shahin', 35, were killed at Baneshwar Union of Rajshahi-Dhaka Highway, said Sergeant Moniruzzaman of Highway Police outpost at Shibpurhat.

The truck that rammed them from behind and crushed the motorcycle has been seized, he said. But the driver and his assistant have fled. 

Dhaka

An auto-rickshaw driver has died and four more are injured after a bus crashed into the three-wheeler at Gulistan around 6am.

Md Jamal Hossain, 40, was driving the four passengers from Kochukhet to Jatrabari, said SI Md Bachchu Miah of the police outpost at Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

The injured are Mufti Habib Ullah, 45, Md Jahangir, 30, Md Jamal, 42, and Usman, 35.

Habib, an Imam, was headed to Narayanganj with Jahangir, said the policeman. The remaining two are fish sellers.

Bogra

A 20-year-old motorcycle rider died after losing control of his vehicle at Kahalu.

'Sihan' was riding with two friends who were injured along with a pedestrian. The three were being treated at Shahid Ziaur Rahman Medical College Hospital. 

The accident happened at Porapora on Bogra-Naogoan road around 11am Thursday, said Kahalu Police OC Noor-e-Alam Siddiki.

Sitakunda

A man died when a pick-up van rammed a covered van parked near Sitakunda Bar Aulia Mazar on Dhaka-Chittagong Highway.

Eight more who were in the pick-up have been injured in the incident at 3pm Thursday.

The deceased was identified as Mohammad Rasel, 20.

He was in the pick-up along with others who, after failing to get a bus, decided to travel from Feni to Chittagong in the vehicle.

Rasel died after being taken to Chittagong Medical College Hospital, said Nayek Amir Hossain of the hospital's police outpost.