In Faridpur city, three rickshaw passengers narrowly escaped injury when a large mahogany tree toppled onto their vehicles this morning. The incident occurred around 11:00 am on Thursday in the Neeltuli neighbourhood, adjacent to the single-storey emergency wing of Faridpur General Hospital. Fortunately, no one was hurt.
Investigations revealed that a wall behind the hospital’s emergency department had been demolished due to old age and was in the process of being rebuilt. During the construction work, soil at the base of the mahogany tree was removed, inadvertently destabilising the tree. This morning, while construction activities were ongoing, the tree’s weakened roots gave way, causing it to collapse onto three passing rickshaws.
Rickshaw driver Mamun Mia described the incident: “I was carrying passengers along that road when the tree suddenly fell, hitting my rickshaw and two others nearby. My rickshaw and Chunnu Bapari’s vehicle suffered major damage to their roofs, and Tushar Bapari’s rickshaw was also affected. Thankfully, neither the passengers nor the drivers were injured.”
Confirming the event, Senior Station Officer of Faridpur Fire Service, Nazrul Islam, stated: “The mahogany tree measured approximately 30–35 feet in height and 5–6 feet in width. While the tree damaged the rickshaws, no human injuries were reported. The road was initially blocked, but the tree was swiftly cut and removed, allowing traffic to resume within a short time.”
Faridpur General Hospital’s civil surgeon and administrator, Mahbubur Rahman, said: “The Public Health Engineering Department is overseeing the wall reconstruction project. The contractors and engineers involved have been summoned. They admitted that they had not anticipated the tree falling in this manner. We have advised them to exercise greater caution in the future. The department has also assured compensation for the three affected rickshaw drivers.”
Details of Damaged Rickshaws
| Driver Name | Damage Description | Passenger Status |
|---|---|---|
| Mamun Mia | Roof severely damaged | Safe |
| Chunnu Bapari | Roof severely damaged | Safe |
| Tushar Bapari | Roof partially damaged | Safe |
Local residents reported that the sudden fall caused a brief traffic disruption and drew a large crowd. The rapid response by the fire service and construction team ensured the area was cleared promptly, preventing any further risk.
The incident serves as a stark reminder of the need for heightened safety precautions during construction work near large trees and public thoroughfares. Authorities have pledged to monitor the area more closely and ensure that similar accidents are prevented in the future.