Uttara BRT tragedy: Primary investigation report submitted

The probe committee - formed into the deaths of five people who were killed when a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project girder fell on their car – has submitted the primary report.

Additional Secretary of the Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges Neelima Akhter on Tuesday submitted the preliminary investigation report to the Secretary of the Road Transport Department ABM Amin Ullah Noori at 8am, an hour before the deadline. 

Earlier yesterday, a three-member investigation committee was formed and it was asked to submit the report by 9am today.

The members of the committee are – Road Transport and Highways Division Additional Secretary Neelima Akhter, Roads and Highways Department Additional Chief Engineer Sabuj Uddin Khan and DMP Additional Deputy Police Commissioner Manzoor Morshed.

The inquiry committee will later submit the final report.

BRT Managing Director (MD) Shafiqul Islam earlier noted that the committee in their report will explain why the girder fell from the crane during construction work.

Five members of a family were killed as a 150-tonne girder of BRT-3 Elevated Expressway fell on their car, smashing it to the ground, at Uttara's Jasimuddin road on Monday (15 August).

Two passengers – a newly married couple Hridoy, 26 and Riya Moni, 21 – were rescued, but the rest of the passengers – Jharna, 28, her two children Zakaria, 2, and Jannat, 6, and Hridoy's father Rubel, 50, and his mother-in-law Fahima, 45, died on the spot.

An eyewitness of the incident said the car was demolished within a blink of an eye and blood, mixed with the fuel from the car's tank, were oozing out from the car.

When the BRT authorities were relocating the girder, they set up no roadblocks or security perimeter and as a result vehicles were moving on the road as usual.

On top of it, according to fire service officials, the BRT authorities did not respond to the rescuers' initial request to arrange a crane for removing the girder.

It took three and a half hours to bring out the bodies from the smashed vehicle and in the absence of a proper crane, rescuers could not relocate the girder and were forced to cut the sedan to take the bodies out.