The driver was driving the 10-ton truck illegally with medium driving licence, though it was mandatory to have a heavy driving licence to drive the truck that caused the fatal accident.
The truck driver and his helper escaped from the scene immediately after the accident.

The deceased are identified as Biplab, 19, son of Ramprashad, Dipu Chandra Roy, 19, son of Sunil Chandra Roy, Amrito Chandra Roy, 20, son of Kamikkha Roy, Shangkar Chandra Roy, 22, son of Krishab Chandra Roy, Md Selim, 28, son of Jahangir Alam and Ranjit Chandra Roy, son of Suresh Chandra Roy of Nijpara village, Masum, 18, son of Fazlul Karim and Morsalin, 18, son of Nur Alam of Pathanpara village, Monoranjan Chandra Roy, 19 and Mrinal Chandra Roy, 21 of Shimulbari village, Kanak Chandra Roy, 35, son of Dholu Chandra Roy, Bikash Chandra Roy, 28 and Ranjit, 45 of Rajbari village under Jaldhaka upazila in Nilphamari district.

All of them belonged to low income group and came to Cumilla to earn breads for their families they left behind in their homes in Nilphamari.

Chouddagram Police Station officer-in-charge Abdullah Al Mahfuz said that around 6:30am, 15 workers were sleeping under a makeshift shed at Kazi and Co Brick Kiln at Narayanpur village under Gholpasha union in Chouddagram.

Then a coal-laden truck came to the kiln to unload coals.
The truck overturned as the driver lost control and crushed the makeshift sheds leaving 12 of the workers sleeping there spot dead.

One more worker died on his way to the hospital and two others were taken to Cumilla Medical College Hospital.

The truck owner claimed that the brick kiln manager had forced the driver, Md Sohel alias Sobuj, to unload the truck at a wrong point. As a result the accident occurred, he said, adding that during the accident the helper was having his meal at a nearby hotel.

The truck owner also claimed that he was not privy to the trip to the brick kiln and also that the helper the driver hired was not familiar to him.

However he admitted that the driver was driving with medium driving licence.

Bangladesh Road Transport Authority director (operation) Sitangshu Shekhar Biswas said that it was mandatory to have heavy driving licence and huge experience to drive a 10-ton truck for carrying coals.

The driver, who was absconding, could not be reached through his mobile, which remained switched off till 9:00pm.
The brick kiln owner Kazi Abdur Razzak said that he was not present during the accident while his brother Shahjahan Siraj said that they were trying to get the licence of the driver to help police track him down.

Superintendent of police in Cumilla Syed Nurul Islam told the media that after recovering the bodies and having post-mortem examinations they had sent them to the victims’ respective homes in Nilphamari.

The bodies were scheduled to reach their home on Saturday morning, he said.

He said two investigation committees – one by the district administration and the other by the police administration — had been formed to probe the matter.

‘After getting the report, we would be able to tell the identifications of the driver and the workers,’ he said and also added that their preliminary findings tell them that the victims were from very poor families.

The committee formed by the district administration was asked to file report within seven days while the police probe committee was asked to submit report in three working days, the officials said.

Abdullah Al Mamun, additional superintendent of Cumilla police and deputy commissioner Abul Fazal Mir visited the spot.
The local administration has given Tk 20,000 to the families of each victim while the owner of the brick field provided them with Tk 10,000 each.