মঙ্গলবার, ৩০ এপ্রিল ২০২৪, ০৮:১৬ অপরাহ্ন
At least 14 people were killed and 20 others injured when a speeding truck ran through several vehicles before plunging into a roadside ditch near Gabkhan bridge in the Jhalakathi municipality area on Wednesday (16 April).
The identities of the deceased could not be known immediately. According to the relatives of the deceased, all the people on the crushed vehicles were on way to attend a wedding ceremony.
The accident occurred around 1:30pm when the cement-laden truck ploughed through ten vehicles, including an auto-rickshaw and a car, standing in front of the toll gate.
Shahidul Islam, officer-in-charge (OC) of Jhalkathi Sadar Police Station said 12 people died on the spot and 16 to 20 people were injured.
Two more people died while undergoing treatment at hospital, said Superintendent of Jhalkathi Police Mohammad Afruzul Haque Tutul.
Dr Mehdi Hasan Sani, resident medical officer of Jhalkathi Sadar Hospital, said they received 12 dead bodies from the road accident while another 17 people were admitted with injuries.
Some of the injured have been sent to Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital for advanced treatment, he added.
Meanwhile, during the Eid holidays, around 100 people have died in road crashes across the country between 7 to 16 April. Although road safety experts blame a lack of supervision by the authorities concerned, the highway police insist that the accident rate has declined thanks to a series of steps.
