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Ferry services between Rajbari’s Daulatdia and Manikganj’s Paturia have been suspended due to dense fog since Sunday midnight, causing immense suffering for commuters.
Nur Ahmed, the assistant manager at Daulatdia Point for the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation (BIWTC), verified the situation, explaining that they had to halt ferry services to prevent potential accidents.
As of filing this report around 8:30 a.m., the ferry services remained halted due to poor visibility, he said, adding that the services will be resumed when fog dissipates, as per UNB reports.
According to the local BIWTC office, the fog started getting thicker on Saturday night and impacted visibility. The ferry services were suspended at 1 a.m. to avert accidents.
Four ferries carrying more than a hundred vehicles remained stranded in the middle of the Padma River since the suspension of the ferry services, they said. Several hundreds of Dhaka-bound buses and goods-carrying vehicles waiting to cross the river remain stuck at the Daulatdia Ghat.
Md Moniruzzaman, a caretaker of a bus service at the Daulatdia Ghat, said that passengers, especially children and the elderly, stuck in the vehicles waiting to cross the river are the worst sufferers. There is no chance to operate the ferry until the visibility improves, he added.
Ghat laborer Md Nuruzzaman Miah said some engine-run trawlers carrying motorbikes crossed the river risking their lives amid the thick fog.
He suggested increasing vigilance by the authorities concerned so that no one can cross the Padma and Jamuna rivers during thick fog, endangering lives.