Narrow escape as train stops mere feet from bus in Khilgaon

A Kamalapur-bound train narrowly avoided ramming into a bus stuck on the tracks in the capital's Khilgaon area this afternoon.

The driver of the train, heading to Kamalapur Railway Station from Cumilla, was able to stop the train around 20 feet from the Chandra Paribahan bus around 1:45pm.

Our photographer, who was at the spot during the incident, said the driver of the bus drove the vehicle close to the rail tracks in order to get a wide berth for a U-turn manouevre. The bus then got stuck in the sand, with a portion of the vehicle jutting onto the tracks.

There was no boundary separating the road from the tracks at that spot.

The incident happened less than 24 hours after at least 17 people were killed and several others were injured in a train collision near Bhairab Bazar Junction Railway Station yesterday. Witnesses said the bus got stuck on the rail track when its driver was attempting a U-turn at the level crossing around 1:45 pm.

When pedestrians saw the approaching train, they frantically waved and signalled to the driver to stop, reports our correspondent and photographer, who were present at the spot.

No one was hurt in the incident, said Dhaka Railway Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Ferdous Ahmed.

"We were able to remove the bus from the rail line at 2:15pm," he added.