The NBSTC bus that rammed into a stationary truck at Manikpur on Friday. Picture by Mehedi Hedaytullah

Islampur, Aug. 5: A spate of accidents in a span of few hours snuffed out the lives of two persons, including a 12-year-old girl, and injured 38 people in North Dinajpur district today.

A road blockade and traffic jams were witnessed on NH31 and NH34 after the five accidents that occurred between 4am and 11am.

Mohammad Kasem, a helper of a truck, died when he was run over by another truck on NH31 at Ramganj at 4am. The 22-year-old man was checking the suspension of his vehicle when the accident occurred. Police arrested the errant driver and seized his truck.

Twelve-year-old Bobby Chowdhury died and six others suffered injuries when an SUV fell into a roadside ditch at Karandighi, about 65km from here. The accident occurred when the car’s tyre burst on NH34 around 11am.

The six injured persons have been admitted to the district hospital in Raiganj. “The seven in the SUV were from Kona in Nepal and were returning home after a pilgrimage to Gaya,” said a police source.

A road blockade was organised at Madaripur when a boy and his sister were knocked down by a speeding truck on NH31. Mohammad Amir, 11, was taking his 14-year-old sister Chesmenur Khatun to Madaripur High School on a bycyle when the accident occurred around 10am. The police said both the siblings were seriously injured.

After the mishap, enraged people blocked the highway for three hours at Madaripur, about 15km from here. The protest was withdrawn after the subdivisional police officer of Islampur, Indra Chakrabarty, arrived at the spot with a large contingent.

The mob also damaged the truck involved in the accident.

The police said Chasmenur, a Class VII student, had been referred to North Bengal Medical College and Hospital.

A crash involving a North Bengal State Transport Corporation bus resulted in the largest number of casualties of the day. Twenty-seven people were injured when the bus rammed into a stationary truck on NH31 at Manikpur. The injured included the bus conductor and the drivers of both the vehicles.

The police said it was drizzling and the bus was speeding when the crash took place at 5am. The bus was on its way to Gangarampur in South Dinajpur from Dhubri in Assam.

Those injured in the Manikpur mishap were admitted to the Islampur subdivisional hospital. Two patients were later referred to North Bengal Medical College and Hospital in Siliguri. Sources at the hospital here said 15 people had been released after first aid, while nine were undergoing treatment. Manikpur is around 40km from Islampur.

The accident brought about a traffic snarl at Manikpur with the bus and the truck blocking NH31. The police said the truck was illegally parked on the main carriageway of the highway and the vehicle had been seized.

Another accident took place on NH34 at Dalkhola, 55km from here, at 11am. Two trucks collided head-on and the drivers of both the vehicles were injured.

The additional superintendent of police, Islampur, Ujjwal Bhowmick, said the police had a trying time tackling the multiple mishaps. “There were a road block and traffic jams at the accident spots. However, things returned to normal by the afternoon.”