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Published : 02 Apr 2026, 05:22 PM
Train communication between Sylhet and the rest of the country resumed on Thursday afternoon, 18 hours after a fuel-carrying train derailed near Mantala Railway Station in Habiganj's Madhabpur Upazila.
Mantala Station Master Ataur Rahman Khadem said the line was cleared around 4pm following the recovery of the derailed wagons and necessary repairs to the tracks.
Railway authorities have formed a five-member probe committee, headed by a divisional transport officer, to investigate the accident.
The derailment occurred around 9:30pm on Wednesday when a Chattogram-bound freight train carrying fuel oil was passing Mantala station.
Five wagons veered off the tracks; four overturned beside the line, while one fell into a nearby roadside ditch.
A rescue train from Akhaura arrived at the scene around midnight to begin salvage operations.
The operation, however, was delayed as one of the wagons was submerged in water beneath a bridge, according to ABM Kamruzzaman, Dhaka divisional manager of Bangladesh Railway.
The accident drew crowds of locals who attempted to collect spilled fuel from the site.
Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), police, and Army personnel were eventually deployed to secure the area and maintain order.
Acting Commander of Habiganj-55 BGB, Syed Ishtiaq Morshed, said their team managed to recover and secure approximately 1,000 litres of diesel using drums and jerricans.
Despite these efforts, Kamruzzaman noted significant losses of fuel.
Each wagon carried around 39,000 litres of diesel.
Preliminary estimates suggest that at least 30 percent of the oil from two wagons and 5 to 10 percent from the others were looted following the crash.
The 18-hour suspension caused severe hardship for commuters, leading to widespread schedule collapses.
