Photo of plunged freight train Dhaka TribuneOn Monday, a freight train carrying furnace oil derailed and three of its wagons, each carrying 25 tons of furnace oil, plunged into a canal from a rickety bridge in the Hathazari area, raising concerns about an oil spill into the Halda RiverEnvironmental activists blamed the Bangladesh Railway authorities for repeated oil spills while carrying furnace oil for power plants in Chittagong. "We were able to confine the oil spill to a 2km area, putting up makeshift dams at key points of the canal. "It is unfortunate that the rail authorities have not taken a lesson from the similar accident on June 19, 2015. Since furnace oil is not water soluble, the amount of oxygen in the water decreases drastically when oil forms a layer over the water. "We will investigate if negligence of the rail authorities caused the derailment leading to the oil spill.

Source: Dhaka Tribune April 30, 2019 16:18 UTC