Police and witnesses said the accident occurred when a Dhaka bound passenger bus from Kurigram fell into a roadside ditch at Jurabandha at around 9:45am, as the driver of the bus lost control over the steering while trying to save a cow crossing the road.

Six of the dead were identified as Ranju Mia, 20, and Jalil, 42, of Ulipur village in Kurigram, bus driver Abdul Jalil, 40, of Kurigram Sadar upazila, Farook Mia, 30, of Sadeknagar village in Lalmonirhat, Amena Begum, 52, wife of former lawmaker Osman Goni of Belkuchi village in Sirajgonj, and Mahbub, 3, son of Mahatab Ali of village Thanapara in Lalmonirhat. Identity of the other could not be known.

The injured were admitted to Rangpur Medical College Hospital (RMCH) and different hospitals and clinics in Lalmonirhat, Kurigram and Rangpur.

Of them, condition of seven--Manik, 25, Salam, 28, Harun, 29, Jibon, 40, Haider Ali, 36, Milon, 36, and Reshma Begum--were stated to be critical.