At least 17 killed as bus plunges into wayside pond in Bangladesh

At least 17 people were killed after a passenger bus fell into a roadside pond in southern Bangladesh, police said on Saturday.
Officer Gautam Kumar said the bus carrying nearly 50 passengers veered out of control and fell into the wayside waterbody near the southern Jhalakhati district town, more than 130 kilometres south-west of the capital Dhaka. Twelve people were killed at the scene.
Five more people died in hospitals after local residents and members of the Fire Service and Civil Defence emergency department rescued the wounded passengers, he said.
The accident occurred in the morning as the driver lost control over the vehicle, after one of its tyers exploded on a regional highway, he said, referring to preliminary investigation.
The bus was en route to the Jhalakathi district headquarters from Bhandaria township, he said.
Twenty people were undergoing medical treatment at Jhalakathi hospital, said Deen Mohammad, an official at the health facility.
Deaths from road accidents are frequent in Bangladesh due to lax implementation of laws, poor road conditions and reckless driving.
Road Safety Foundation, a civil group that monitors accidents in Bangladesh, reported more than 7,700 deaths in some 6,829 road crashes in 2022.