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Rajshahi: At least 16 people were killed in a fire between a bus and a minibus in Rajshahi. Officials from the Rajshahi Sadar Fire and Civil Defense Service who were involved in the rescue operation said the fire and the casualties occurred when the gas cylinder of the minibus exploded.
The tragic road accident took place in front of the Katakhali Police Station in the Kapashia area of Katakhali on Friday (March 26) at around 2.15 p.m. Upon receiving news of the incident, the staff of the Rajshahi Metropolitan Police Service rushed to the scene and the rescue operation is taking place there.
Meanwhile, the Rajshahi Metropolitan Police (RMP) commissioner, Abu Kalam Siddique, has visited the scene. Currently, senior officials from the Metropolitan Police and the Sadar Fire Service are present there.
The bodies of those killed in the fire were completely burned, so far no one has been able to identify them. Rajshahi Metropolitan Police (RMP) Additional Deputy Commissioner (HQ) Golam Ruhul Quddus also said DNA samples would have to be collected from the bodies to confirm their identities. He also said that discussions are taking place on the matter.
Witnesses said a Hanif Enterprise passenger bus was heading to Dhaka from Rajshahi on Friday afternoon. On the other hand, a minibus was coming to Rajshahi from the Majidpur area of Rangpur Sadar. There were a total of 16 passengers on the minibus. The bus and minibus collided head-on in front of the Katakhali Police Station in the Kapasia area as soon as they reached Rajshahi. The minibus caught fire. Locals immediately rescued six people, but the remaining 11 burned to death inside the minibus.
RMP’s additional deputy police commissioner Golam Ruhul Quddus told banglanews that 13 of the minibus passengers were members of the same family. A gas cylinder in the minibus exploded and caught fire shortly after the collision, the fire service said.
After the incident, the locals rescued six people and took them to Rajshahi Medical College Hospital (RAMEC). The rest could not get out of the minibus. They could not be rescued due to the intensity of the fire. As a result, 11 people died in the fire inside the minibus. Those who were rescued and taken to hospital also died. After the accident, Rajshahi Sadar Fire Service personnel began rescuing the remaining bodies at the scene. The rescue operation is still continuing, the senior police official said.
He added that RMP commissioner Abu Kalam Siddique was at the scene. The fire service and the police try to recover the bodies from the minibus.
Abdur Rashid, deputy director of the Rajshahi Fire and Civil Defense Service, said that one of the two cylinders of the minibus exploded as a result of the collision. Attempts are being made to recover the bodies from the inside. The fire started immediately. The fire has been extinguished. The bodies of the passengers were completely burned.
Bangladesh Time: 2.30pm, March 26, 2021 Update: 1559 Hours
SS / SI / NT
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