Three people were killed and five others injured when a patient-carrying microbus crashed into a stationary dump truck in the Shukurkandi area of the Meherpur–Kushtia highway late on Tuesday.
The deceased were Shahin Ali, 25, Akhtar Banu, also known as Lal Buri, 45, both from Garadob village in Meherpur, and microbus driver Jamal Hossain, 40.
According to the victims' families, Shahin’s grandmother, Fazila Khatun, had been admitted to Gangni Upazila Health Complex after contracting diarrhoea.
As her condition worsened, she was referred to Kushtia Medical College Hospital.
While transporting her, the microbus collided with a stationary dump truck parked on the roadside in the Shukurkandi area.
All eight passengers in the microbus sustained serious injuries.
Locals rescued them and admitted them to Kushtia Medical College Hospital.
Shahin, Akhtar Banu, and driver Jamal later died while undergoing treatment.
Gangni police station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Bani Israel said that police were dispatched to the scene upon receiving news of the accident.
Both the dump truck and the microbus have been seized, the OC said.
An investigation is underway to determine the cause of the accident, and legal action will be taken if the victims' families file a written complaint, the OC added.
