Three people, including a three-year-old child, lost their lives and eleven others sustained injuries following three separate road accidents across Narsingdi district on Thursday. The fatal incidents occurred in the Raipura, Shibpur, and Belabo upazilas, plunging local communities into grief and renewing serious concerns regarding transport safety on regional thoroughfares.
The most severe accident transpired around 2:00 pm on the Narsingdi-Raipura regional road in the Mahmudনগর area under Raipura Upazila. According to police and eyewitness accounts, a CNG-run auto-rickshaw carrying five passengers departed from the Arshinagar stand in Narsingdi, heading towards Raipura. As the vehicle crossed Hasnabad and reached the Mahmudnagar No. 10 bridge, it collided head-on with another auto-rickshaw travelling from the opposite direction.
The impact was severe enough to send one auto-rickshaw hurtling into a roadside ditch, while the other flipped over onto the asphalt. Both vehicles were reduced to twisted metal. Local residents rushed to the scene to assist in rescuing the trapped passengers and drivers, transporting twelve people to Narsingdi Sadar Hospital. Upon arrival, attending physicians declared 35-year-old Ujjwal Sheel dead. Ujjwal was the son of Narayan Chandra Sheel from Methikanda village in Raipura.
Dr Farida Gulshanara Kabir, Resident Medical Officer at Narsingdi Sadar Hospital, confirmed that twelve individuals were brought to the emergency department following the crash. One victim was dead on arrival, whilst another critically injured individual was transferred to a medical facility in Dhaka for specialized treatment. The remaining casualties are currently receiving care at the local hospital.
Earlier that morning, two additional casualties involved heavy brick-laden utility transport vehicles. In Shibpur Upazila, a 19-year-old labourer named Md Shabbir Miah died near the Shibpur College Gate area after falling from a moving brick trolley and getting crushed beneath its wheels. Shabbir was the son of Md Masud Miah of Dhanua village in Masimpur Union.
Around the same time in Belabo Upazila, a three-year-old child named Alisha Akhtar Noha was struck and killed instantly by a brick trolley in the Patuli Riverbank area. Noha was the daughter of Kashem Miah from Patuli village.
Officers-in-Charge Mujibur Rahman of Raipura Police Station, Mohammad Kohinoor Miah of Shibpur Model Police Station, and SM Amanullah of Belabo Police Station confirmed the fatalities in their respective jurisdictions.
These tragic occurrences underscore the ongoing hazards associated with mixing lightweight passenger auto-rickshaws with unregulated, heavy transport machinery such as tractor-pulled brick trolleys. Local safety experts highlight that narrow regional roads, lack of dedicated lane separation, and inadequate safety measures for labourers riding atop freight vehicles remain primary contributors to the recurring toll on Bangladesh’s rural roadways.
