At least 17 people were killed and 30 were injured after a Dhaka-bound bus veered off the approach road to the Padma Bridge and crashed into a ditch in the Kutubpur area in Shibchar upazila of Madaripur, Bangladesh on Sunday, news agency PTI reported.
The Dhaka-bound bus, driven by Emad Paribahan, lost control on a motorway in Madaripur around 7.30 am, PTI reported citing police statements.
According to police, the death toll is expected to rise because many of the injured are in critical condition.
The injured were taken to various hospitals, according to Madaripur Police Superintendent Md Masud Alam.
"The accident is believed to be the result of reckless driving and mechanical failure of the bus," Alam told bdnews24, a news portal.
"It is believed that the wheel of the speeding bus burst and it lost control and fell into the ditch and hit hard," Shiplu Ahmed, Deputy Assistant Director of Fire Service, Faridpur, said.
Three fire service units are assisting with rescue efforts, according to Lima Khanam, duty officer of the Fire Service and Civil Defence Headquarters.
They stated that the deceased and injured had yet to be identified.
According to Md Sabuj Khan, the counter man at the Shonadanga bus counter, the Emad Paribahan bus left for Dhaka with more than 43 passengers.
Road accidents are common in Bangladesh because of old, poorly maintained vehicles and roads, as well as inexperienced drivers.
In the two weeks around the Eid al-Adha holidays in Bangladesh last July, nearly 400 people were killed and nearly twice that number were injured in more than 300 road accidents.
(With Inputs From PTI)