Two workers were killed and another injured after being trapped under a soil collapse during culvert construction work in the Dorianagar area of Cox’s Bazar town on Thursday morning.
The deceased were identified as Md Ilyas and Rakib.
Both were residents of Banshkhali upazila in Chattogram district, according to initial reports.
The incident occurred around 11:30am while workers were engaged in excavation work for a culvert on a road leading to the outer campus and research centre of Chattogram Veterinary and Animal Sciences University.
Abdur Rahman Mojumdar, manager of contracting firm Lucky Enterprise, said the soil collapsed suddenly during excavation at the culvert base, trapping three workers under the debris.
“Other workers immediately rushed to the spot and managed to rescue them by removing the soil. They were taken to Cox’s Bazar Sadar Hospital,” he said.
Doctors at the hospital declared Md Ilyas and Rakib dead on arrival, while the injured worker is currently undergoing treatment.
Inspector (Investigation) of Cox’s Bazar Sadar Model Police Station, Himel Roy, said the workers were employed under a contracting firm and were engaged in culvert construction when the accident occurred.
“Police visited the scene after receiving information. The bodies have been sent to the hospital morgue for autopsy,” he said, adding that legal action would be taken if a complaint is lodged by the victims’ families.
Police also confirmed that an investigation has been launched to determine whether adequate safety measures were in place at the construction site and to identify the cause of the accident.
