HABIGANJ, Apr 2 (V7N) — Rail communication between Sylhet and the rest of the country was fully restored on Thursday afternoon, ending an 18-hour disruption caused by the derailment of an oil-laden train in Madhabpur upazila. The tracks were cleared and services resumed at approximately 4:00 PM, following intensive recovery operations by railway engineers and relief trains dispatched from Akhaura.

The accident occurred at roughly 9:45 PM on Wednesday (April 1) near the Mantala Railway Station. Five wagons and the guard’s van of a fuel-carrying train traveling from Chattogram to Sylhet veered off the tracks, with one of the wagons plunging into a roadside ditch. While no casualties were reported, the derailment caused significant damage to approximately 500 meters of track and led to the cancellation of major intercity services, including the Upaban, Kalni, and Udayan Express, leaving thousands of passengers stranded.

A significant security challenge emerged immediately following the crash as diesel began leaking from the overturned tankers. Hundreds of local residents rushed to the scene with buckets and containers to collect the spilled fuel. To prevent a potential fire hazard and stop the theft of the estimated 200,000 liters of diesel, personnel from the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) 55th Battalion, along with the Army and local police, were deployed to secure the perimeter. The BGB successfully intervened, halting the looting and recovering a large quantity of the siphoned oil.

A five-member probe committee has been formed by the railway authorities to investigate the cause of the derailment, with a mandate to submit their report within three working days. Preliminary efforts focused on retrieving the submerged wagon and repairing the twisted rails to allow the resumption of passenger and freight traffic. With the line now clear, railway officials confirmed that regular schedules are expected to normalize by Thursday evening.

END/SMA/AJ