What should have been a routine journey back to work after the Eid holidays turned into a deadly disaster on the waters of the Padma River, where at least 26 people lost their lives after an overcrowded passenger bus plunged into the river at Daulatdia ferry ghat.
Families who had set out together, many with children, never reached their destination. Instead, their journey ended in what transport experts are calling not merely an accident, but a “structural killing” — a tragedy rooted in systemic negligence.
The bus, operated by Sowhardo Paribahan on the Rajbari–Kushtia route, left Kumarkhali municipal bus terminal at around 2:10pm on Wednesday for Dhaka with its designated capacity of 40 passengers.
But that number did not remain fixed for long.
According to the company’s Kumarkhali counter master Tanmoy Ahmed, additional passengers were picked up along the route — six from Kumarkhali, seven from Khoksa, four from Machpara, and 15 from Pangsha.
By the time it approached Daulatdia, the 40-seat bus was carrying around 50 people, including the driver and helper.
“The bus lost its brakes and fell into the river,” he admitted, acknowledging the overcrowding.
Passengers who survived the crash described a chaotic and overcrowded scene inside the vehicle.
Sakib Hossain, Abdul Aziz and Delwar Hossain said there was barely space to stand. Every seat was occupied, while others were sitting on the engine cover. Several passengers were holding small children in their laps.
At around 5:30pm, just before boarding the ferry pontoon, a few passengers got off the bus — a decision that likely saved their lives.
Moments later, the bus reportedly lost control due to brake failure and plunged directly into the river.
Local residents were the first to respond, rescuing six to seven people and sending them to hospital. A joint rescue operation soon followed, involving four units of the fire service, 10 divers, as well as personnel from the army, police, naval police, coastguard, the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority, and local administration.
The scale of the tragedy became clearer as the operation progressed.
A total of 26 bodies were recovered — 23 by the fire service, two who were declared dead after being taken to hospital, and one recovered by navy divers. Eight people were rescued alive, some of whom are receiving treatment at local health complexes, Rajbari Sadar Hospital and Faridpur Sadar Hospital.
Rescue officials warned that strong river currents and the position in which the bus was lifted could mean some bodies may have drifted away.
By Thursday morning, families gathered at Rajbari Sadar Hospital morgue to identify their loved ones. Later, the bodies were handed over to relatives after identification.
While evidence of brake failure and overcrowding appears strong, the bus owner Akhtaruzzaman Hasan denied the allegations.
He insisted the vehicle was fit and had no mechanical faults, claiming instead that another ferry struck the bus, causing it to fall into the river.
He also disputed the number of passengers, saying there were around 40 to 42 people on board.
The driver was among those killed, while the helper survived as he was outside the vehicle at the time.
Transport expert Professor Md Hadiuzzaman rejected the owner’s claims outright, describing the incident as a clear case of systemic negligence.
“No one will take responsibility,” he said. “Some will blame brake failure, others will mention passenger numbers — but these are not new issues.”
He pointed to weak risk management by operators and flaws in the vehicle fitness certification system, noting that many old vehicles in the country continue to receive clearance despite safety concerns.
He was also critical of ferry ghat management.
“There was severe negligence,” he said. “There was no prepared emergency response team or divers on standby. This is a total system failure.”
He added that such incidents should not be described as accidents, calling them instead “structural killings” caused by the combined failure of multiple stakeholders.
The scale of the tragedy has prompted a response from authorities.
The Ministry of Shipping has formed a six-member investigation committee to determine the cause of the incident and identify those responsible. The committee, headed by Additional Secretary Md Muhidul Islam, has been asked to submit its report within three working days.
At the same time, a legal notice has been sent to relevant government departments, including the road transport and bridges ministry, demanding compensation of at least Tk one crore for each victim’s family, as well as treatment and rehabilitation for the injured.
The notice also calls for an impartial investigation into alleged negligence behind the disaster.
As the rescue effort winds down and investigations begin, the focus is shifting from what happened to why it happened.
For the families who lost loved ones, the answers may come too late.
What remains is a sense that this was not an unavoidable disaster, but one shaped by a chain of decisions — overcrowding, possible mechanical failure, and gaps in oversight — that ultimately turned a routine journey into a fatal plunge into the Padma.
