Reckless driving ruins 2 families

Reckless driving virtually wiped out two families yesterday as slack enforcement of traffic rules continue to give law-breaking drivers impunity, exposing thousands of road users to the constant danger.

Every day many lives are cut short in horrifying crashes on highways and the bloodletting continued with 10 dying yesterday in Comilla, Sirajganj, Mymensingh, and Thakurgaon.

A psychiatrist from Dhaka and three of his family members were killed when a long-haul bus collided head on with his car at Daudkandi on Dhaka-Chittagong highway around 1:45pm.

Three of a family died in their sleep when a truck, allegedly with a drowsy driver at the wheel, veered off the road and went into the hovel they were living in in Sirajganj around 5:30am.

A student of Jahangirnagar University was killed when the ambulance he was using to carry the body of a family member collided with a truck in Mymensingh around 11:00am.

Mithu's two-year-old son, who was injured in the crash, undergoing treatment at the National Institute of Neurosciences and Hospital. Photo: Palash Khan, Shaheen Mollah

The horrific crashes happened amid growing concern that road crashes take so many lives in Bangladesh each year yet the government and its related bodies seem unable to significantly reduce the number of fatalities.

At least 8,642 people were killed and 21,855 others injured in road crashes across the country last year alone, says a report published this month by Bangladesh Passengers' Welfare Association.

Of the injured, at least 1,305 became disabled while around 52 percent of the deceased were the lone bread-earners of their families, adds the report.

COMILLA

Fazlul Bari Mithu, 40, associate professor and registrar of National Institute of Mental Health and Research, was returning to Dhaka with his family after attending the wedding of a relative in Comilla.

The crash at Daudkandi on Dhaka-Chittagong highway left Fazlul, who was driving the car; his wife Asmaul Housna, 34; their daughter Fahmida Fairooz Sneha, 11; and house help Sima, 21, dead on the spot.

Fazlul's two-year-old son Shahjalal Arian suffered serious head injuries while eight-year-old daughter Fariha Bushra Bari Faiza was also hurt, said police and relatives.

It was not clear how the collision happened but Fazlul's sister Sabina Yasmin said Fazlul was an experienced and careful driver.

She said after finishing work on Monday, Fazlul alone drove to Comilla where his family members were attending the wedding of Asma's younger sister.

Police recovered the bodies and sent the injured to Daudkandi Upazila Health Complex.

The driver and helper of the bus fled the scene of the accident.

The injured children were moved to Dhaka as their condition deteriorated, said Farzana Akhter, a doctor at the hospital.

With head injuries, Arian was admitted to the National Institute of Neurosciences and Hospital while Faiza took primary treatment, said doctors.

SIRAJGANJ

The truck heading towards Dhaka crushed the shack killing Abu Bakar Sheikh, 42, his wife Arbi Khatun, 35, and their son Sabbir Ahmed, 10, on the spot, reports our Pabna correspondent.

The extremely poor family had been living on the government land, said Monirul Islam, officer-in-charge of Shahzadpur Police Station.

Ziaul Hasan Talukder, additional superintendent of police in Sirajganj, said the driver might have been drowsy since he drifted away from the road and went into the shack. The ultra-poor family had not been evicted from the land on humanitarian grounds, he added.

Mojnu Miah, 40, and his son Sourav, 9, were also injured. They were taking treatment at Bogra Shaheed Ziaur Rahman Medical College Hospital.

Police seized the truck but the driver and helper had fled the scene.

MYMENSINGH

Yakub Ali Abir, 24, a masters student at Jahangirnagar University, and an unidentified person were killed and two others were injured in separate crashes in Mymensingh, reports our correspondent there.

Abir and his two friends were heading for Mymensingh from Chittagong in an ambulance, carrying the body of a one-day-old baby girl of his sister, said Sub-Inspector Maruf Rahman, in-charge of Bhuraduba Highway Police in Bhaluka.

When the ambulance reached Mehrabari area on Dhaka-Mymensingh highway, a truck crushed the ambulance, injuring its three passengers, said police.

They were rushed to Mymensingh Medical College Hospital where Abir died.

Police seized the truck and detained its driver Bachhu Miah, 25.

In another road crash, an unidentified person, aged around 35 was killed when a truck ran him over in Char Kalibari area on Mymensingh-Netrakona highway around 4:00am, said police.

Meanwhile in Thakurgaon, six-year-old Jhumur, was killed when a microbus hit her from the behind while she was walking along the road at Jagannathpur around 12:30pm, reports our Thakurgaon correspondent.

Jhumur died on the way to Thakurgaon Sadar Hospital, said police.