Death toll in Mymensingh bus-Mahindra collision hits 8, 3 more killed in separate crash

The district's superintendent of police blames reckless driving and lack of driver skills for the deadly accidents

Eleven people have died in two separate road accidents in Mymensingh’s Phulpur and Tarakanda Upazilas.

In Phulpur, eight people were killed when a bus collided with a three-wheeled passenger vehicle, locally known as Mahindra, near the Courier Bridge around 8:45pm on Friday, said the district's Superintendent of Police Kazi Akhterul Alam.

Meanwhile, three people died when an ambulance collided head-on with a CNG-run autorickshaw in Tarakanda's Ramchandrapur area around 5:30pm the same day.

Of the eight victims in the Phulpur crash, five have been identified. They are Farid Mia, 38, Jahur Ali, 70, Hasina Khatun, 50, Shamsuddin, 65, and Azim Uddin, 35. All were passengers on the Mahindra.

In Tarakanda, the victims were Jebeda Khatun, 85, Rakibul Hasan, 15, and autorickshaw driver Mohammad Alam, 35.

Phulpur Police Station chief Abdul Hadi said a Shyamoli Bangla Paribahan bus was heading towards Dhaka from Haluaghat at high speed when it hit the Mahindra coming from the opposite direction. Five people died on the spot, and six others were seriously injured. One died at Phulpur Upazila Health Complex and two more at Mymensingh Medical College Hospital.

Following the crash, the bus driver and his assistant fled. An angry mob set fire to the bus, halting traffic for an hour until police and Fire Service personnel brought the situation under control.

Tarakanda Police Station chief Tipu Sultan said the autorickshaw was headed toward Mymensingh when it collided with an ambulance near the Himalaya Filling Station. Two passengers, a woman and a child, died instantly. The driver and three other passengers, along with two from the ambulance, were injured. Autorickshaw driver Mohammad Alam later died while undergoing treatment.

The ambulance was from the Haluaghat Upazila Health Complex and was not carrying a patient. Its driver also fled after the accident.

SP Akhterul, who visited the scene in Phulpur, blamed reckless driving and lack of driver skills for the crashes. He vowed to ensure medical assistance for the injured and legal action against those responsible.