9 killed as bus ploughs thru rescuers of road crash
A three-bus pileup in thick fog killed nine people and injured 45 others in Pirganj upazila of Rangpur yesterday morning.
The first crash occurred at around 7:00am when a speeding bus of Uttar Banga Paribahan rammed from behind a Dhaka-bound bus of FK Line on Bogra-Rangpur highway at Chat Sholagari.
The FK Line bus had just pulled over to have an engine glitch fixed, said Sub-Inspector Durul Huda of Boro Darga highway police station.
Within minutes, as locals were rescuing the wounded, the third bus, which was of Alif Enterprise and bound for Dhaka, ploughed into them and the Uttar Banga coach.
At least four of those killed had gone to the rescue of the passengers, added the SI.
However, neither the highway police nor hospital sources could say exactly how many died in the first crash and how many in the second.
Of the deceased, five died on the spot and the rest on their way to hospital.
Six of the dead have been identified as Swadhin, 20, Kuddus, 55, Russell, 22, and Rashidul Islam, 27, of Polashbari upazila of Gaibandha, and Raja Miah, 50, and Bulbul, 30, of Rangpur town.
The remaining three could not be identified till filing of this report at 8:30pm.
The injured were admitted to different hospitals in Rangpur and Gaibandha. Twelve of them were stated to be in critical condition.
A mob set fire to the Uttar Banga Paribahan bus, while police seized the other two buses.
All three drivers and their assistants, however, managed to flee the scene.
After the accidents, hundreds of vehicles were stranded on either side of the highway. Traffic returned to normal by 10:00am.
