Two children were killed and two others  injured as a mini truck hit them on Dhaka-Chittagong highway in Sitakunda upazila of Chattogram early Sunday. The deceased were identified as Mehedi Hasan, 13, son of Md Alamgir of Dakkhin Mehedinagar village of Mirsarai upazila and Md Siam, 10, son of Mintu Mia of Sobhanbag area of Sitakunda Sadar. Read: Journo’s father killed in Dhaka road accident Witnesses said when the Dhaka-bound mini-truck was unloading fish standing on the highway in Sitakunda municipality area around 8:30am a lorry hit the truck from behind, leaving the two children dead on spot and two others including Siam’s father Mintu Mia injured. Later, the injured were rushed to Upazila Health Complex. Amir Faruque, officer-in-charge of Kumira highway police outpost, said police seized the vehicles but  the drivers managed to escape.

Three persons were killed and another was hurt after a speeding van ploughed into a tractor trolley parked along the busy Dhaka-Chittagong highway  in Chandina upazila early on Thursday. Of the deceased, two were daily wagers loading sand on to the tractor trolley. Police said that they were crushed to death under the van that rammed the tractor trolley and overturned. The van driver, cops said, also died in the impact of the crash. Read: Two youths killed in Naogaon road crash The deceased were identified as daily wagers -- Nurul Islam, 40, a resident of Harikhola village in Cumilla's Chandina upazila, and Foizar Rahman, 40, of Savar in Dhaka. Liton, 40, was the driver of the van. According to the highway police, Nurul and Foizar were loading sand on to the tractor trolley in front of a market in the Harikhola Mazar area in the morning when the Dhaka-bound van crashed into the tractor trolley after its driver lost control of the vehicle. A unit of Chandina Fire Service carried out the rescue operation. Nurul and Foizar died on the spot, while Liton succumbed to his injuries on the way to hospital. Md Rahmat Ullah, Superintendent of Police of Highway Police Cumilla Region, said that the injured tractor driver, Amir Hossain, has been shifted to Cumilla Medical College and Hospital. "A probe has been ordered into the accident." Read: 2 killed in city road crash Road accidents in Bangladesh Road accidents are common in Bangladesh and have been a major cause of deaths. During the last Eid-ul-Fitr holiday rush, road accidents claimed 323 lives in just 15 days, said Bangladesh Jatri Kalyan Shamiti, a human rights body. Besides, 513 people, including 63 children, were killed and 598 injured in 409 road accidents across the country in March, said Road Safety Foundation on April 5. According to the NGO, 147 lives were lost in 138 motorcycle accidents, which is 28.65% of the total deaths. Read: Three killed in Thakurgaon road crash In a report released in February 2020, the World Bank pointed out that Bangladesh needs to invest an estimated $7.8 billion over the next decade to halve its road crash fatalities. The report attributed the high death rate on Bangladesh’s roads to lack of investments in systemic, targeted, and sustained road safety programmes.

Traffic on Langalbandh bridge on the Dhaka-Chittagong highway will be restricted from July 12-14 due to the repairing of damaged decks and slabs of the bridge. Located between Kanchpur and Meghna bridge on the highway, Langalbandh bridge will be partially restricted so both-way vehicles can use one lane instead of two on July 12 from 8 am to 10 pm, said a media release of the ministry of road transport and bridges Sunday. Also read: Motorists asked to avoid Langalband Bridge for 3 days The bridge would remain completely closed after 10 pm on July 12 to 12 pm on July 14. Meanwhile, light weight vehicles were being requested to use Mograpara-Kaikartek Bridge-Nabiganj-Madanpur road and heavy weight vehicles were requested to use Kanchpur-Bhulta-Narsingdi-Bhairab Bridge-Sarail-Brahmanbaria-Comilla road as alternatives.

Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader on Tuesday ordered the Roads and Highways Department to remove posters and banners from the key Dhaka-Chattogram Highway.

Set up at Mohipal along the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway promising to provide emergency treatment to accident victims 14 years back, Feni Trauma Centre is now battling for its survival for lack of physicians, electricity, gas and water connections.