5 killed in truck-ambulance collision in Kushtia

At least five people have been killed in a head-on collision between a truck and an ambulance on the Kushtia-Jhenaidah Highway in Kushtia.

The accident took place in the 11-mile Lakshmipur area of Kushtia Sadar upazila around 2:30pm Tuesday. 

Aside from the five on-spot casualties, another victim has been taken to the Kushtia General Hospital in critical condition, confirmed Mostafizur Rahman, officer-in-charge (OC) of Islamic University police station.

The victims were passengers in the ambulance, he said. 

The deceased were identified as Tipu Sultan, 40, the driver of the ambulance, Mafizur Rahman, 50, a mechanic of Lohagora Oil Pump and owner of the ambulance, his wife Nadia Begum, 38, his son, Rifat Rahman, 14, and brother-in-law Alim Sheikh.

Insan, 40, another brother-in-law of the deceased, Mafizur, was critically injured and admitted to the Kushtia Sadar Hospital

“An ambulance carrying the six people from Pabna to Jessore collided head-on with a truck of Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC), when it reached 11-mile Lakshmipur area, killing five people on the spot,” the OC further said.

The truck has been seized but its driver and his assistant fled the scene immediately after the accident, he added.

Police and fire service department are currently conducting rescue work.

The deceased, Mafizur, along with his family, went to Pabna to release his wife Nadia --who was admitted to the Pabna Mental Hospital for the last two months-- but died on their way back to home in Jessore.