At least 274 people have lost their lives in road accidents across the country during the first 10 days of Eid travel this year, according to Road Safety Foundation.

In a statement issued on Friday, the organisation said the fatalities occurred between March 17 and March 26, during which a total of 342 road accidents were recorded nationwide.

The foundation noted that this year’s death toll has already surpassed that of last year, when 249 people were killed over an 11-day Eid-ul-Fitr travel period.

It added that the current Eid travel window will continue until March 28, after which a comprehensive report detailing the total number of accidents and casualties will be released.

Several major incidents contributed to the high number of casualties. On March 21, at least 12 people were killed in Cumilla when a train collided with a bus at night.

Earlier, on March 19, two people died following a collision between two launches at Sadarghat.

In one of the deadliest incidents, 26 people were killed on March 25 when a passenger bus plunged into the Padma River while attempting to board a ferry at Daulatdia ghat in Rajbari during the post-Eid return journey