7 of a family among 8 killed as ambulance catches fire in Bhanga

At least eight people, including seven members of a family, were killed as an ambulance bursts into flames after hitting the roadside railings of Dhaka-Mawa-Bhanga Expressway in Maligram area under Bhanga upazila of Faridpur district on Saturday.

The deceased were identified as Tashlima Begum, 55, wife of Azizar Rahman, her daughter Kamala Parveen,26, Beauty Begum, 24, grandchildren Hasib, 8, Hafsam, 2, Arif,12, and Mehdi , 12, all residents of Felannagar village in Gunbaha Union of Boalmari Upazila in Faridpur district, and ambulance driver Mitul, 25, son of Subash Chandra Malo, resident of Taki Molya Road, Lakshmipur Mohalla under Faridpur City.

According to locals and police sources, Tashlima Begum, the wife of Azizar Rahman, a Saudi expatriate of the upazila, came to Dhaka a month ago and was at the residence of her elder daughter Kamala Parveen after treatment. They left Dhaka for home this morning and the ambulance caught fire after hitting the roadside railings in the area around 11 am.
Seven people were killed on the spot and the driver of the Ambulance was injured, Boalmari Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Mosharef Hossain said.

Ambulance driver was admitted to Faridpur Medical College Hospital at 12.10 pm. When his condition worsened, he died on the way from Faridpur to the burn unit of Dhaka Medical at around 3 pm, officer-in-charge (OC) of Faridpur Katwali Police Station Abdul Jalil said.

Police and fire service personnel recovered the bodies from the spot.

Faridpur Deputy Commissioner Kamrul Ahsan Talukder said that a three-member investigation committee, headed by Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Bipul Chandra Dey, has been formed to investigate the incident.

They have to submit their report within three working days after the investigation. The district administration will pay Tk 20,000 to each of the victims and Tk 10,000 to the injured.

BSS/GY