Dense fog disrupts life, connectivity

Dense fog enveloped most of the country causing immense hardships for thousands of people as road, waterways and air communications were severely disrupted.

Hundreds of vehicles were queued on both sides of the Padma river as ferry services on two major routes were suspended for hours.

At least three flights scheduled to land in Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) on Tuesday night were forced to be diverted to other destinations due to poor visibility.

The Met office said yesterday that except a few places in Khulna, Rangpur and Chattogram, fog has enveloped the entire country. The fog may prevail today too, it added.

There may be moderate to thick fog from midnight to morning, the Met office said in its bulletin published at 6:00pm yesterday.

Three flights of China Southern, Saudi Arabian Airlines and Malindo Air could not land at HSIA on Tuesday night due to heavy fog, leaving several hundred passengers stranded.

China Southern flight CZ-391 was supposed to land at HSIA at 11:20pm, but was forced to return back to Kunming due to heavy fog, said Md Doulotuzzaman, assistant director of air traffic control at HSIA.

The Saudia flight, SV 804, from Riyadh was supposed to land at HSIA around 11:30pm.

"After entering Bangladesh territory, the pilot saw bad weather and was forced to divert to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata due to poor visibility," Doulotuzzaman also said.

Malindo Air's flight OD-162 from Kuala Lumpur, which was supposed land in Dhaka at 11:50pm, was also forced to divert to Don Mueang Airport in Bangkok.

The situation was no better for those travelling by road.

In Manikganj, passengers of 21 south-western districts were stranded for around 12 hours since Tuesday night as ferry services on the Paturia-Daulatdia route were suspended due to thick fog.

The hardship was greater for women and children as over the period, they were unable to go to the toilet.

"I reached Paturia ferry terminal around 10:00pm on Tuesday night. I have been waiting here for over 12 hours. I don't know when my bus will be allowed to board the ferry," said SS Sourav, a Chuadanga-bound passenger.

"I have taken two days' leave from my office to visit my village home. But I have already spent one day here. I don't know when I can go home and when I will go back to work in Dhaka," said Md Al Wafiq, a passenger who claimed he had been waiting at Patuaria terminal for around 12 hours.

Sabina Yasmin, a female traveller from Kushtia, said, "There is no toilet facility for women. How can we survive without using toilets for around 12 hours?"

Finally, services resumed around 10:00am when the fog started to clear, said Jillur Rahman, deputy general manager (Commerce) of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation's (BIWTC's) Aricha ferry sector.

Four ferries were forced to anchor in the middle of the Padma river, the BIWTC official said.

Over 500 vehicles, including more than 300 goods-laden trucks, were stuck at the Paturia side following the suspension of the ferry services.

In Munshiganj, ferry services were suspended for eight hours from around 10:00pm of Tuesday night on the Shimulia-Banglabazar route due to heavy fog.

Over 400 vehicles were stranded on both sides of the river.

Finally, ferry operations resumed around 6:00am in the morning yesterday, said Shafayet Ahmed, BIWTC manager at Shimulia ferry terminal.

In Tangail, vehicular movements on Bangabandhu Multipurpose Bridge were suspended twice early yesterday due to dense fog.

Hundreds of passengers and vehicle operators faced immense hardship as long tailbacks were created at both sides of the bridges.

Bridge authorities suspended vehicular movement for around one and a half hours in two phases -- around 1:10am and then around 3:30am -- to avoid accidents, said Kazi Aiyubur Rahman, officer-in-charge of Bangabandhu Bridge East Police Station.

The tailbacks of numerous vehicles at one stage spread about 20 kilometres to Rabna bypass in Tangail from the east side of the bridge and 22 kilometers to Hatikumrul Intersection in Sirajganj from the west side of the bridge, said passengers and transport workers.

The long tailback lasted for around 10 hours. Vehicular movement normalised around 12:00pm yesterday, said Md Kamal Hossain, in-charge of Elenga Highway Police Outpost.

[Our correspondents from Manikganj, Munshiganj and Tangail contributed to the story]