Fog disrupts Paturia-Daulatdia ferry service

FT ONLINE

Ferry services on the key Paturia-Daulatdia route were disrupted due to dense fog on early Wednesday.

Zillur Rahman, deputy general manager of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation's (BIWTC) Aricha terminal, said the services were suspended from 11:00 pm on Tuesday night due to poor visibility.

“Four ferries were stranded in the middle of the Padma River while some others are stuck on both ends of the route,” he said.

Several hundred vehicles, including buses, trucks and cars, remained stranded along with several thousand passengers on both sides.

Passengers said dense fog had been forcing a suspension of ferry services for about six to eight hours daily over the last few days. They are suffering because of the shivering cold.

The authorities concerned could not take any alternative steps and although the ferries have fog lights, they are useless, some of the commuters claimed.

Fog lights were installed in ferries in 2014 for smooth sailing in foggy weather. But the fog lights did not make any difference in ferry operation because of their inferior quality, the passengers claimed.

BIWTC officials declined to comment.