Heart patient among 3 dead as truck hits ambulance

A cardiac patient, his wife and the driver of an ambulance carrying the patient were killed on their way to a hospital as the vehicle collided with a sand-laden truck in the capital's Sher-e-Bangla Nagar early yesterday.
The dead are Nilu Pathan, 50, his wife Farzana Pathan Lipi, 40, and driver Ansar Ali, 35.
The crash left a son and four relatives of the deceased couple injured. They are Nilu's 22-year-old son Nabil Pathan, a student of Uttara Rajuk School and College, three brothers Milu Pathan, Liton Pathan, and Manik Pathan and nephew Sajeeb Pathan.
All the injured were first rushed to Dhaka Medical College Hospital, (DMCH) from where critically wounded Nabil was shifted to Japan-Bangladesh Friendship Hospital. He was put on life support there.
Dilara Islam, elder sister of Nilu, said her brother fell sick around 1:00am and was rushed to a private clinic in Uttara. As his condition deteriorated, doctors referred him to the National Heart Foundation Hospital in Mirpur.
Accordingly, the attendants of the patient hired the private ambulance. When they came near the Bangabandhu International Conference Centre around 3:00am, the truck coming from the opposite direction smashed into the microbus, causing the casualties.
Sher-e-Bangla Nagar police said the truck was heading for Farmgate from Gabtoli. Following the accident, the truck driver and his helper managed to flee the scene, leaving the vehicle on the road.
Nilu had been abroad for years. Since his return home, he had been looking after his properties.
Naief, the other son of the deceased couple, was inconsolable after hearing of his parents' death and the critical condition of his brother.