Mother Dies in Osmaninagar Ambulance Crash Three Days After Giving Birth, Newborn in ICU
A woman named Halima Begum, 30, has died in a road crash in Osmaninagar upazila of Sylhet, three days after giving birth to a child. At around 8pm on Sunday, an ambulance carrying her struck the back of a parked truck at Kashikapon, in Tajpur union of Osmaninagar, on the Sylhet-Dhaka highway, and she died on the spot.
Halima Begum was the wife of Saudi Arabia expatriate Raju Mia, of Palpara village in Tajpur union. Suman Kumar Chowdhury, officer-in-charge of Sherpur Highway Police Station in Sylhet, confirmed the matter on Monday night.
Five people, including four members of the dead woman's family, were injured in the crash. The injured are ambulance driver Muhibur Rahman, Halima Begum's mother Rubena Begum, her mother-in-law Shahena Begum, her father-in-law Anhar Mia and her sister-in-law Ima Begum.
According to the family, Halima Begum gave birth to a daughter at a private hospital in Tajpur on Friday morning. When the newborn's condition deteriorated on Sunday, she was being taken to a private hospital in Sylhet city for better treatment.
On the way, at around 8pm, the ambulance reached the Kashikapon area and hit the back of a truck parked beside the road. Halima Begum, who was inside the ambulance, died on the spot.
The injured, including the newborn, were rescued and admitted to Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital. The newborn baby is being treated in the hospital's ICU.
Halima Begum's uncle Alal Mia said the ambulance driver had been driving out of control. He said the newborn had breathing difficulties, which is why she was being taken from a local clinic to a private hospital in Sylhet for better treatment when the crash happened.
Alal Mia also said Raju Mia had married Halima about a year ago after returning home from abroad, and went back overseas about four months after the wedding. The daughter born last Friday was their first child, and Raju Mia had been very happy at the news of her birth.
On hearing of his wife's and child's condition, Raju Mia broke down in Saudi Arabia. Alal Mia said Raju himself fainted on hearing the news, and relatives there rescued him and admitted him to a hospital.
Alal Mia said Halima Begum was buried on Monday afternoon. The other injured people returned home after treatment. In his words, the family now has only one wish — that the newborn baby survives.
Police said the ambulance hit the truck parked on the road and that the light at that place was somewhat low. After the crash, the truck and the ambulance were taken into police custody.
