Our Correspondent :
Twelve people were killed and five others injured when a train collided with a bus at a level crossing in Sadar upazila of Joypurhat district on Saturday morning.
Six of the deceased were identified as bus driver Mamunur Rashid, Ramjan, Sarwar Hossain, Arifur Rahman Rabbi, Saju Miah and Babu.
Deputy Commissioner Md Shariful Islam said the accident occurred at Puranapoil Rail Station around 6:55am on Saturday as the level-crossing was open but the gateman was absent there.
“The gateman was asleep when the train collided head-on with the bus. He fell asleep leaving the rail crossing gate open,” informed Joypurhat Superintendent of Police Md. Salam Kabir.
A Rajshahi-bound train of ‘Uttara Express’ hit a Hili-bound bus on the rail line and took it away 500 metres away from the station, leaving 10 bus passengers dead on the spot and five others injured, Fire Service and Civil Defence deputy assistant director Khandaker Sanaul Haque confirmed.
Of the injured, two died at Shaheed Ziaur Rahman Medical College in Bogura.
The wounded three are Farruq Hossain of Panchbibi upazila, Zia of the same upazila and Shukur Ali Julhash of Tangail.
The train services of northern region with the rest of the country snapped soon after the incident.
However, the trains in the northern region have started running from 2:45 pm on Saturday 8 hours after the accident.
Confirming the matter, Joypurhat station master Amena Khatun said a rescue train reached the spot upon receiving the news of the accident. “The rail communication on this route became normal after rescuing the crashed train,” she said.
Thirty-six people were killed and 40 wounded in collision between a bus and a train at Amotto Rail Crossing in Akkelpur upazila of the district on July 11, 2006.
