Joy turns to tragedy: Five dead in Chattogram pickup crash

Just hours before disaster struck, Salimpur's Banglabazar in Sitakunda was alive with Mansa Puja celebrations. Families stayed up late, lanes glowing with lights, music, and laughter. No one imagined that by dawn, funerals would replace festivities.

At sunrise today, a pickup carrying young men from the fishing community collided with a parked covered van near City Gate under Akbar Shah police station. Five were killed and four were injured.

The deceased are Akash Das (26), Ajit Das (24), Roni Das (25), Jewel Das (18), and the driver, Md Sohel (32). Except Sohel, all were childhood friends from Jelepara, sons of fishermen, who worked together hauling fish from wholesale markets.

At Chittagong Medical College Hospital, grief filled the corridors. Akash's mother collapsed over his lifeless body, pleading for one last glimpse. Jewel's father, Gopan Das, broke down upon finding his youngest son.

The shock was just as raw for Jewel's father, Gopan Das. Searching desperately among the bodies, he broke down when he found his youngest son. "He was with his friends, before leaving home the night before, I told him to come back soon. Then in the morning, I was told he would never return."

Ajit Das leaves behind three children, the eldest in ninth grade, the middle child in fifth, and a two-year-old daughter too young to understand she has lost her father. 

His wife, Tokki Rani, fainted repeatedly on her husband's body. "My son doesn't know the news yet. My little girl keeps calling for her father. What answer will I give them?" she cried. 

For Roni's mother, Rajbala, the loss reopened an old wound. She had lost her husband when Roni was barely a toddler. She raised him alone, married him off with pride, and was waiting to become a grandmother. 

His wife is now five months pregnant. "My boy is gone. When his child is born, who will it call father?" she cried, collapsing into the arms of her relatives.

Police said the pickup, carrying ten people, lost control and hit the illegally parked van. The driver and two passengers in the front died instantly; two others died en route to the hospital. Four remain in critical condition.

Officer-in-Charge Md Arifur Rahman said, "The pickup's front was completely crushed. Both vehicles have been seized. A case is being filed against the covered van for illegal parking."

For Jelepara, the Mansa Puja celebration will never feel the same. In a single night, joy turned to mourning, as friends who danced together at the festival were carried home in coffins.