A female student of the International Islamic University Chittagong (IIUC) was killed and two others were seriously injured after a speeding truck rammed a bus, causing it to overturn onto students standing nearby in Sitakunda on Tuesday morning.
The deceased, Maisha Mushfirat, 20, was a second-semester student of the university’s English Language and Literature (ELL) department. She was the daughter of Shakhawat Hossain, a resident of Bartakia in Khaiyachhara Union of Mirsharai Upazila in Chittagong.
The accident occurred around 9:20am in front of the university’s main gate on the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway.
According to local sources, a speeding truck hit a local bus from behind, causing it to overturn onto students standing beside the road. Several students were trapped underneath and seriously injured.
Locals and fellow students rescued the injured and took them to Chittagong Medical College Hospital, where doctors declared Maisha dead. The other injured students are receiving treatment, with one reportedly in critical condition.
Angered by their fellow student’s death, IIUC students blocked the highway and railway tracks, demanding the arrest of the truck driver and safer roads.
The blockade disrupted road traffic and rail services in the area. Sitakunda Railway Station Master Nizam Uddin said the Mohanagar Express was stranded at Faujdarhat because of the protest.
Sergeant Shamim Alam of Baro Awlia Highway Police Station told Bangla Tribune that a truck had hit a minibus from behind, causing it to overturn onto students.
“One female student was killed and several others were injured and are receiving treatment at hospital,” he said, adding that police were working to restore normality amid the blockade.