20 killed in head-on bus collision

Dhaka: Two passenger buses collided head-on on Monday in central Bangladesh, killing at least 20 people and wounding dozens more, a television station said.

The two buses crashed in Comilla district, on a busy two-lane highway linking the capital, Dhaka, to the southern port city of Chittagong, the private Bangla Vision network reported.

One bus fell into a rain-filled roadside ditch and landed on its side. Some of the passengers managed to get out of the partially submerged vehicle, but many others were trapped inside.

Bodies recovered

Rescuers later recovered at least 19 bodies from the wreckage of the bus in the ditch, which is about 1.8 metres deep.

About 30 wounded passengers from both vehicles were taken to a nearby hospital in Comilla district, 88km east of Dhaka, where one person died of her injuries.

Local authorities were not immediately available for comment.

More than 4,000 people die each year in road accidents across Bangladesh, mostly due to erratic driving, poor maintenance of vehicles and flaunting of traffic laws, road experts say.