Chittagong's rail link with Dhaka, Sylhet snaps as train derails at Paharhtoli

Chittagong's railway communications with Dhaka and Sylhet have snapped after an inter-city train jumped the track at the port city's Paharhtoli.

Four carriages of the Dhaka-bound Mahanagar Godhuli Express went off the rails at the level-crossing near Paharhtoli Railway Station around 3:30pm on Wednesday, said Paharhtoli police OC Ranjit Kumar Barua.

The train, however, left for Dhaka around 4:30pm, leaving the derailed carriages behind.

Fire Service, railway police and security forces personnel had immediately started the rescue efforts.

Fire Service's Deputy Assistant Director Jasim Uddin told bdnews24.com they rescued at least 25 passengers from two carriages.

Three of the carriages were found to be on their sides and the fourth one was outside the tracks.

Md Jabed, a passenger, said, "The train had made a sound and come to a halt while passing the level crossing. The bogies at the end jumped the track at the time."

Railway officials said the Chittagong-Dhaka route's 'up line' was shut down in the morning after the engine of a Dhaka-bound container train coming from Chittagong Port derailed near Fouzdarhat station at Sitakunda.

Since then, all trains had been told to take the 'down line' from Paharhtoli to Fouzdarhat, East Zone's Divisional Railway Manager Manjurul Alam Chowdhury told reporters.

Mahanagar Godhuli's four carriages went off the rails in the afternoon when it was changing tracks to take the 'down line', he said.

They were 'damaged a bit', Chowdhury said and added that a relief train was on its way to move the derailed carriages for services to resume.

He said a five-strong committee, led by Divisional Transport Officer Firoz Iftekhar, will look into the incident.

He said the probe report will let them know the cause of the accident and the extent of damage.