Train with 1,200 passengers narrowly avoids disaster in Gazipur

The lives of 1,200 passengers aboard the Banalata Express, en route from Dhaka to Chapainawabganj, were narrowly spared in Gazipur today after a red flag was displayed on the tracks. 

The train was approaching the Shaheed Minar area in Dhirasram when it was stopped just 40 metres from a dangerously bent rail track, potentially preventing a major accident.

"The train was stopped at 2.30pm after the sighting of the red flag. We were unaware of any issues with the tracks until then," said Mokhlesur Rahman, the train's director. 

Locals reported that just half an hour before the Banalata Express train was stopped, another train had crossed the affected line. 

When railway staff arrived, they discovered that a 20-metre section of the dual-gauge line had bent and the sleepers were loose. Security personnel, noticing the danger, put up a red flag. However, the Banlata Express, heading to Chapainawabganj, had not received any prior warnings. 

Upon seeing the red flag near Dhirasram station, the train master applied emergency brakes, stopping the train just 40 metres away from the damaged track, thus averting a disaster for 1,200 passengers.

Railway authorities later discovered that a section of the dual-gauge line had shifted, with sleepers unlocked and the track bent. 

The cause of the damage is under investigation. 

Station Master Hanif Ali confirmed that the train was halted at Dhirasram due to the damaged track, and that the line would remain closed until repairs were completed.

Meanwhile, the dual gauge line between Dhaka and Joydebpur remains blocked, though services on the other track continue as normal.