Three people have been killed and four others were injured after a battery operated three-wheeler was hit by a coal laden truck in Barisal.
The accident took place near Khudrakathi area on Rahmatpur–Mirganj road under Barisal Airport police station around 6:20pm on Saturday night.
Local people rushed to the spot to rescue the victims and send them to Barisal Sher-E-Bangla Medical College Hospital (SBMCH) with the help of police. Two of the victims were dead on spot and the other died in the hospital.
Transport operations were suspended for about 40 minutes on that route after the accident.
The deceased are- Rahat, 20, three wheeler driver, Ahad Amin Khan Rupam, 26, section officer at Babuganj campus of veterinary medicine faculty of Patuakhali Science and Technology University, and Parvez, 28, a local man, according to Abdur Rahman Mukul, officer-in-charge (OC) of Barisal Airport police station.
The four injured passengers are- Tajul Islam, 40, staff of veterinary faculty of PSTU, Sumon, 18, and Saidul Islam, 20, and Nazmul Huda, 29- all of them admitted at SBMCH.
Dr Mahbubur Rahman, emergency medical officer of the hospital said conditions of the injured passengers are also critical and bodies of dead passengers were sent to hospital morgue for autopsy.
Quoting witnesses and injured, police said the truck was going to Mirganj from Rahmatpur and the battery operated three-wheeler was running on Mirganj-Rahmatpur route.
Police impounded both the vehicles but the truck driver and his assistant managed to escape, police sources added.