Road accidents kill 17 in 20 hrs

At least 17 people were killed and dozens injured in eight districts in less than 20 hours between Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon.

According to the experts, overspending, reckless driving and rampant plying of illegal transport on the roads mainly caused the accidents.

As per Prothom Alo investigations, 3755 people have been killed in the last 407 days. It means on an average 10 people were killed a day during the time.

Some organisations who work for road safety in the country said road crashes claim at least 20 lives a day.

Bangladesh University of Science and Technology’s (BUET) Accident Research Institute (ARI) observed that speeding and reckless driving were behind the 90 per cent of the road accidents.

“Reluctance to implement traffic laws is also behind the accidents,” an ARI researcher added.

The biggest accident of the day took place in Muksudpurupazila of Gopalganjon Saturday night, claiming eight lives and injuring 29.

Asked about the accident, ARI’s assistant professor Kazi Saifun Newaz on Sunday told Prothom Alo that the reckless driving and speeding caused the accident.

“It was caused by lack of implementation of the law and overall mismanagement.”

The deceased are Asim Majhi, 32, from Jhalakathi, Hasan, 25, from Barguna, NazirGazi, 36, from Amtoli in Barisal, WasimMajhi, 40, BazlurRahman, 35, HasanMridha, 36, Zahurul Islam, 29, and Dwipon Biswas, 30.

Fire Service assistant director ABM Momtaz Uddin Ahmed said the passengers of the bus told him that the driver was drowsy.

In Magura, two young bikers - Nur Islam, 22, and Ibrahim, 22 - were killed as their bike crashed into a power tiller-run local vehicle in Mohammadpurupazila of the district.

In Faridpur, a bus crushed Md Hasan Sheikh, 33, and Kurban Biswas, 32 on Dhaka-Khulna Highway in Madhukhali.

In Jhalakathi, a Class IX student, Yasin Hossain, 14, who was driving a diesel-run three wheeler, died after a wheel of his vehicle became detached Razapur upazila. 

In Chandpur, another school student was crushed under a microbus while crossing Chandpur-Comilla highway in Shahrasti Upazila of the district.

The deceased is Meher Alam, 15, son of Nur Alam in Balshid village of the upazila. 

In Chapainawabganj, a woman was killed as she was fell off a motorbike in Sadarupazila.

In Chittagong, a man was killed as a CNG-run auto-rickshaw hit him in Banshkhaliupazila. The deceased is Md Nurunnabi, 45, a resident of the upazila.

A power tiller killed rickshaw-puller Mohammad Solaiman, 50, on Kashipur-Peyarapur road in Sonaimuri upazila of Noakhali.