Electrical issues halt Dhaka metro rail for 1.5 hours

Services on the line from Uttara to Shewrapara were interrupted for one and a half hours

Electrical issues stopped the metro rail in its tracks, stranding passengers for an hour and a half and testing the patience of those at stations.

Passengers flooded the stations since Sunday morning after the first phase of the Bishwa Ijtema came to a close.

The trains came to a halt at 2:45 pm. It was later reported that it was due to electrical issues. The train service resumed at 4:15 pm.

Mir Manjoor Rahim, MRT general manager (electrical) said: “The issue occurred on the electrical line from Uttara South to Shewrapara. Services have resumed after repairs.”

As trains were not arriving, passengers kept piling up at stations and resulted in gates being closed at different stations. Many passengers cancelled their trips after buying tickets.

At 3:30 pm, the gates to the stairs leading up to the station were shut at Agargaon with only the ones leading out left open.

Syed Ahmed, who wanted to take a trip to Motijheel, said: “I bought my ticket an hour ago. But no trains are coming. So I ended up returning the ticket and am heading out. But they gave no refunds.”

Additional Superintendent of MRT Police Mahmud Khan said: “A lot of people gathered at the stations. Different rumours spread as well. We announced the technical issue to the public and asked them not to crowd the stations.”

Nazrul Islam, DMTCL general manager (signalling), mentioned the overhead electrical line “tripped”, causing the problem.

Earlier, the Uttara North Station’s gate was shut at 12 pm as devotees from Bishwa Ijtema flooded in after the 'Akheri Munajat' or the final prayer service. The exits were left open.

Md Iftikhar Hossain, MRT general manager (operation), said passengers were advised to buy tickets from the Uttara South Station.

“Suddenly passengers flooded in and didn’t even have space to stand. Thousands were waiting outside as well.”

The gate was later opened at 1 pm, said Nazrul.