Train derailment spills 40,000 litres of diesel in Ctg canal

A freight train carrying diesel from Patenga derailed at Chittagong Goods Port Yard (CGPY) in Halishahar area of Chattogram today and spilt around 40,000 litres, most of which into a nearby canal.

Three tank wagons derailed around 7:00pm, reports our Chattogram staff correspondent, quoting Abdul Malek, master of the CGPY.

"It will take some day to assess the extent of damage caused by the derailment," he added.

Mohammed Yeasin, officer-in-charge of Railway Nirapotta Bahini (RNB) CGPY outpost, told The Daily Star at the spot that the rescue team reached the area and was working to remove the wagons.

The train was coming to the yard after loading diesel from a depot in Patenga. The incident occurred while the train was entering the yard, he added.

"The cause behind the train derailment was not immediately known. We will form a committee to investigate this incident," said Tarek Bin Imran, divisional traffic officer of Bangladesh Railway (Chattogram Division).

Experts said the spill from three wagons will pose a serious threat to the aquatic ecosystem in the canal.

Mohammad Kamal Hossain, former professor of the Institute of Forestry and Environmental Science at Chittagong University, told The Daily Star, "Oil contamination will destroy the food of aquatic animals on the surface of the canal water. Much aquatic life will die as the oil depletes oxygen in the water."