At least three people were killed and around 50 others injured in a road accident involving two buses and a truck near Varendra University in the Kharkhori area of Rajshahi late Sunday night.
The deceased have been identified as Jewel Ahmed (28), son of Sadikul Islam; Nasim Uddin (32), son of Belayet Hossain; and Mizanur Rahman (26), son of Jobdul Haque. All were residents of Ghorapakhia village in Chapainawabganj Sadar upazila.
According to eyewitnesses and fire service officials, a sand-laden drum truck collided head-on with a Pirojpur-bound bus on the Kharkhori Bypass Road around midnight. The impact caused the bus to veer off the road and fall into a roadside ditch. A second bus, trailing behind, rammed into the rear of the truck, resulting in significant damage to one side of the vehicle.
Passengers from the second bus quickly attempted to rescue those trapped in the overturned bus. Upon receiving news of the accident, fire service teams, police, and local residents arrived at the scene and helped rescue the injured, who were then rushed to Rajshahi Medical College Hospital (RMCH). The three victims succumbed to their injuries while undergoing treatment.
Jasim Uddin Sarker, former organisational secretary of Rajshahi city Jamaat-e-Islami, visited the scene and said that the two buses were carrying nearly 90 passengers—mostly Jamaat leaders and supporters from Rani Hati Union of Chapainawabganj. They were en route to Pirojpur to visit the grave of deceased Jamaat leader Allama Delwar Hossain Sayeedi.
Of the injured, at least 15 were admitted in critical condition to Ward 8 of RMCH, including Jamaat activists Nasim and Jewel, who later passed away.
Ariful Islam, team leader of Rajshahi University Fire Service, stated, “We rescued several critically injured passengers from the bus in the ditch and transported seven of them to the hospital. Locals had already managed to send some of the injured before we arrived.”
LND/NE
