Faridpur  bus-pick up van collision kills 13

Faridpur Correspondent:At least 13 people were killed and 20 others injured as a bus and a pick-up van collided head-on and caught fire on Dhaka-Khulna Highway at Gazaria under Nagarkanda in the district of Faridpur Friday night.

Identities of the deceased could not be established immediately.

Fire service and Civil Defence assistant director Momtaz Uddin at the spot told New Age that the vehicles caught fire as they collided head-on at about 11:15pm.

‘The fire might have taken place by explosion of gas cylinder of the bus.’

Four firefighting units from Faridpur and surrounding districts rushed to the spot, tried to rescue the victims, and brought the fire under control, he said.

‘Both the vehicles have smashed extremely. We have rescued seven bodies so far and spotted six others. We are trying to bring out the bodies cutting the smashed vehicles,’ he said at about 12:45am on Saturday.

Almost all died due to the fire as they were trapped inside the bus, he said.

Nagarkanda police officer-in-charge ASM Nasir told New Age that the accident took place between a Dhaka-bound bus of Hanif Paribahan from Narail and a Khulna-bound pick-up van.

The injured were sent to different hospitals including Bhanga Upazila Health Complex in Faridpur. Three of them were sent to the burn unit of Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

The bodies were sent to Faridpur Medical College Hospital morgue.