Bogura
‘Everything came crashing down on us and I saw blood all around’
Relatives beside the body of a worker killed after being run over by a bus in Bogura. Photo: Agamir Somoy
A motorcycle was standing by the side of the road. Suddenly, its driver rode it onto the road.
A bus of Shah Fateh Ali Paribahan was approaching at high speed in that lane. While trying to avoid the motorcycle, the bus ran over workers standing by the roadside, killing seven people. The accident occurred early Friday in Erulia of Bogura Sadar.
“Every morning, there is a labor market here. Today, a motorcycle driver was bringing a laborer onto the road. Just then, the bus arrived. While trying to pass him, it hit an electric pole. Then it kept running over people,” said Md. Minu (55), of Erulia village.
He was there when the bus accident occurred Friday morning. He helped rescue the injured and sent them to the hospital. Minu said, “The bus was heading toward Naogaon. To avoid the motorcycle, it moved to the right side of the road. Then it also applied the brakes. As a result, the vehicle turned around and moved from west to east.”
“We came and pulled the bodies of the dead and the injured out from under the bus. Most of them were day laborers and farm workers. They had come from Gobindaganj looking for work. Three died here, and four more died after being taken to the hospital,” Minu added.
Police said five of the seven people killed after being run over by the bus at Erulia Bazar were day laborers. The other two had come to hire workers. One of them was the motorcycle driver, Md. Bellal Hossain.
The deceased were Abu Said (45), of Enayetpur village in Gobindaganj, Gaibandha; Nur Alam (45), of Boillagram; Anarul (55), of Kalai in Joypurhat; Amirul (40), of Panchbibi; Tajimul (45), of Parbatipur in Dinajpur; Bellal Hossain (45), of Fapore in Bogura Sadar; and Nur Mohammad Sardar (67), of Narhatta village in Kahalu.
Several local eyewitnesses described the accident. According to them, motorcycle driver Bellal had come to hire workers. After picking up one worker, he suddenly turned the motorcycle onto the road. The accident occurred at that moment. Later, members of the Fire Service and police arrived at Erulia, recovered the bodies and took the injured to the hospital.
Abdur Rahim, a grocery shopkeeper at Erulia Bazar, said he was inside his shop when the accident occurred. He said, “There is a labor market here. People sit on both sides of this road. People take workers after negotiating the wages according to their needs. Suddenly today, the bus hit the electric pole beside my shop. Instead of stopping, the bus started running over people. The driver and helper fled immediately after the incident.”
Twenty two injured people are undergoing treatment at Bogura Shaheed Ziaur Rahman Medical College Hospital. Speaking to them, it was learned that at least 100 workers from several villages in Gobindaganj had come to Erulia looking for work because of the Aman season. They had arrived Thursday night.
Injured Saju Mia is receiving treatment in the emergency department. His home is in Khamarpara village of Sapmara Union in Gobindaganj.
Saju said, “We laborers had been sitting here since early morning. We could not understand what had happened. Suddenly, everything came crashing down on us. Then I saw blood all around and people lying on the ground. Later, people carried me to a vehicle and took me to the hospital.”
Sakibur, maternal cousin of deceased worker Abu Said, said, “I was supposed to come tomorrow, Saturday. Said and my maternal cousin's husband Amirul came a day earlier. They arrived and this happened in the morning. Both of them died.”
Nur Mohammad Sardar, uncle of Al Amin Sardar of Gobindaganj, had come looking for workers. Al Amin said, “My uncle came to Erulia early in the morning to hire workers to plant rice in the field. Then we learned that he had died after being run over by the bus. A healthy man left home. Now we hear that he is no more.”
Prime Minister’s personal physician Dr. A N M Monwarul Kadir Bitu came to the hospital to check on the injured. He also spoke with the families of those who died.
The office of the Sadar Upazila Nirbahi Officer is providing Tk 25,000 to each injured person. The families of those killed will receive Tk 500,000. Sadar Police Station Officer in Charge Ibrahim Ali said, “We have been able to confirm the names and identities of the seven people who died. Two of them were from Bogura. The others had come to Erulia from Gobindaganj and Joypurhat for work.”
The bodies are being handed over to the families after completion of the legal process. The OC also said legal action would be taken if the families of the victims file a case. Police will investigate to determine the actual cause of the accident.
