Floods halt train services from Dhaka to north and south

Floods have damaged a railway approach road in Tangail, halting train services from Dhaka to the north and south of Bangladesh.

All trains scheduled to use the routes on Sunday have been cancelled, said Railway Director General Md Amjad Hossain.

“No trains will run until we can make arrangements,” he told the media at Kamalapur Railway Station on Sunday morning.

Floods have shifted nearly 20 feet of ground on a rail bridge approach in Tangail’s Kalihati Upazila, said Tangail Railway Station Master Jalal Uddin.

The deputy commissioner, the superintendent of police and other senior officials have gone to inspect the scene after receiving word of the incident.

Efforts were underway to complete repairs and resume services as soon as possible, said Bangladesh Railway Western Rajshahi Region Executive Engineer Ramzan Ali.

The Ekota Express from Dinajpur to Dhaka, the Nilsagar from Nilphamari and the Rangpur Express have been forced to stop at various stations, Hossain said.

The Sundarban Express from Dhaka to Khulna had not left Kamalapur Station. No trains from the north arrived in Dhaka or set off from Kamalapur to northern regions.

The Moitri Express on the Dhaka-Kolkata route has also been cancelled for the next two days, Hossain said.

“We are trying our best to conduct repairs and resume train services. We have sent the necessary machinery and workers. They will work overnight to restart the routes as quickly as possible.”

Rail services may return to normal on Monday, he said.