At least five people, including children, of the same family were killed when a girder fell on their car from a crane during Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project work in Uttara of the capital on Monday.
The deceased were identified as Rubel, 50, Jharna Begum, 28, Jannat, 6, Zakaria, 2, and Fahima ,40.
Besides, one more named Riya Moni was injured in the accident.
The accident took place around 3:30pm, Officer-in-Charge (OC) Mohammad Mohsin of Uttara West police station confirmed the matter to Bangla Tribune.
The OC said that a girder fell on a private car while being lifted by a crane.
The victim's family members said that the car was going from Dakshin Khan to Ashulia after the wedding reception of a newly-wed couple, Hridoy and Riya. They got married on Saturday.
At that time, Fahima, Riya, Hridoy's sister Jharna and her two children were in the car while Hridoy's father Rubel was driving it.
Meanwhile, BRT Managing Director (MD) Shafiqul Islam claimed that the incident occurred due to a mechanical fault.
He said: "While we were taking the girder from one place to another by crane, the crane probably tilted and the girder fell down."
When asked about who is to blame for the incident, he said: "At the moment, I cannot say anything without knowing the details. This is a mechanical problem. It is not related to security measures.”
Long traffic jams were created in the surrounding areas due to rescue operations.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday expressed deep shock and sorrow at the death of the victims, reports BSS.
In a condolence message, the prime minister prayed for the eternal peace of the departed soul and conveyed deep sympathy to the bereaved family.
The premier also prayed for a quick recovery of the injured people.
