Dhaka, March 19: At least 17 people were killed and 30 injured when a speeding bus veered off the road and fell into a ditch in Bangladesh on Sunday, according to media reports.

The Dhaka-bound bus operated by Emad Paribahan veered out of control on an expressway in Madaripur around 7.30 am, the police said. The death toll is expected to climb as many of the injured were in critical condition, the police said. Bangladesh Road Accident: 6 Killed, 35 Injured in Bus-Car Collision in Tangail (Video).

Madaripur Police Superintendent Md Masud Alam said the injured were admitted to different hospitals. "The accident is believed to be due to reckless driving and mechanical failure of the bus," bdnews24, a news portal quoted Alam as saying.

Shiplu Ahmed, Deputy Assistant Director of Fire Service, Faridpur, said, "It is believed that the wheel of the speeding bus burst and it lost control and fell into the ditch and hit hard." Pakistan Road Accident: 15 Killed, 60 Injured as Bus Travelling From Islamabad to Lahore Veers Off Road in Punjab Province.

Three units of fire service are carrying out rescue work, said Lima Khanam, duty officer of the Fire Service and Civil Defence Headquarters who is carrying rescue efforts. They said the dead and the injured were yet to be identified.

Md Sabuj Khan, the counter man of the Shonadanga bus counter told The Daily Star newspaper that the Emad Paribahan bus left for Dhaka with more than 43 passengers. Road accidents are common in Bangladesh due to old and badly maintained vehicles and roads, as well as poorly trained drivers.