Staff Reporter:
Ferry services on the Paturia-Daulatdia and Aricha-Kazirhat water routes were suspended due to dense fog, leaving more than 300 vehicles stranded at terminals.
Five ferries were anchored mid-river as visibility dropped sharply.
Abdus Salam, Deputy General Manager of BIWTC Aricha Sector, said the fog began intensifying from Thursday evening and became extremely dense around 9:00pm, covering the entire waterway and making vessels invisible.
To prevent accidents, ferry operations on the Aricha-Kazirhat route were suspended. At the time, two ferries — Bir Shrestha Hamidur Rahman and Chitra — were stranded mid-river carrying passengers and vehicles, while two other ferries remained at Kazirhat ghat.
Meanwhile, ferry services on the Paturia-Daulatdia route were suspended around 12:30am as fog density increased further. Three ferries — Shahparan, Golam Maula and Baigar — were anchored mid-river following the suspension.
Due to the halt in ferry operations, more than 300 vehicles, including over a hundred goods-laden trucks, were stranded at Paturia and Daulatdia ghats, causing severe hardship for passengers and transport workers.
The official said ferry services would resume once visibility improves and fog conditions ease.
