Deaths from runaway train

It is shocking to note that four people were killed and 26 others injured when they jumped off a runaway train in Tongi of Gazipur on Sunday. Four carriages of Dhaka-bound Jamalpur commuter train got detached and began to run away a few minutes after the train left Tongi Railway Station in Gazipur around 12:30pm. Passengers on the roof and inside the carriages jumped off in Natunbazar area, resulting in the casualties. Two of the carriages also derailed. Three died on the spot while another person was pronounced dead at Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH). All the deceased had jumped off the roof of the train.

Sources claimed that the train carriages detached and derailed as the train was switching lines. Following the accident, rail service between Dhaka and the rest of the country, except Narayanganj, remained suspended for more than four hours. The cause of the accident could not be known immediately. Nowadays, rail transportation is considered as the safest and cheapest mode of transport. But in our country, railway is not recognised as an alternative option to other modes of transport because of intolerable delays due to old train operation system as well as frequent rail accidents.  

The overall safety status of Bangladesh Railway such as signalling and interlocking system, train control and operation system, safety performance at level crossing, accident data preservation system, and accident investigation system are not satisfactory. Shortage of required manpower in Bangladesh Railway is one of the major impediments to provide safe and efficient train operation. Collision at level crossing is the major type of train collisions in our country.

There are passengers without tickets. They usually travel on the roof of the trains.  They care less about their safety. It is imperative for the relevant authorities to appoint sufficient number of TTE to check tickets of passengers. Vigilance should be intensified so that none can travel without tickets. Awareness should also be raised to avert such accident. To minimize such incidents in the future, some preventive measures are needed to be taken, such as possible grade separation, use of GPS based vehicle tracking system to control train movements, introduce anti collision devices or automatic train stop devices, safety awareness of road users at level crossings. Psychological disability and physical fitness of all staff related to train operation, especially loco master, should be checked regularly. There is no alternative to precautionary measures to prevent deaths due to train accidents.   

 

Deaths from runaway train

It is shocking to note that four people were killed and 26 others injured when they jumped off a runaway train in Tongi of Gazipur on Sunday. Four carriages of Dhaka-bound Jamalpur commuter train got detached and began to run away a few minutes after the train left Tongi Railway Station in Gazipur around 12:30pm. Passengers on the roof and inside the carriages jumped off in Natunbazar area, resulting in the casualties. Two of the carriages also derailed. Three died on the spot while another person was pronounced dead at Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH). All the deceased had jumped off the roof of the train. Sources claimed that the train carriages detached and derailed as the train was switching lines. Following the accident, rail service between Dhaka and the rest of the country, except Narayanganj, remained suspended for more than four hours. The cause of the accident could not be known immediately. Nowadays, rail transportation is considered as the safest and cheapest mode of transport. But in our country, railway is not recognised as an alternative option to other modes of transport because of intolerable delays due to old train operation system as well as frequent rail accidents. The overall safety status of Bangladesh Railway such as signalling and interlocking system, train control and operation system, safety performance at level crossing, accident data preservation system, and accident investigation system are not satisfactory. Shortage of required manpower in Bangladesh Railway is one of the major impediments to provide safe and efficient train operation. Collision at level crossing is the major type of train collisions in our country. There are passengers without tickets. They usually travel on the roof of the trains. They care less about their safety. It is imperative for the relevant authorities to appoint sufficient number of TTE to check tickets of passengers. Vigilance should be intensified so that none can travel without tickets. Awareness should also be raised to avert such accident. To minimize such incidents in the future, some preventive measures are needed to be taken, such as possible grade separation, use of GPS based vehicle tracking system to control train movements, introduce anti collision devices or automatic train stop devices, safety awareness of road users at level crossings. Psychological disability and physical fitness of all staff related to train operation, especially loco master, should be checked regularly. There is no alternative to precautionary measures to prevent deaths due to train accidents.