30km tailback on Dhaka–Ctg highway after covered van overturns in Cumilla

A 30-kilometre-long tailback brought traffic to a standstill on the Dhaka–Chattogram highway following a road accident in Cumilla's Chandina area last night.

The congestion, which began after a covered van overturned in the Nuritala area in Chandina, extended all the way to Bhaberchar in Munshiganj's Gazaria upazila, causing severe suffering to commuters.

Traffic was halted on both lanes of the highway.

"The gridlock started in the hours after the accident and was worsened by vehicles taking the wrong routes," said Ruhul Amin, officer-in-charge of Eliotgonj Highway Police Station.

"Traffic in the Cumilla section began moving slowly after 12:30pm, but Gazaria remained heavily congested," he added around 12:45pm.

Anwar Alam Azad, officer-in-charge of Gazaria Police Station, confirmed that the impact of the accident in Chandina had reached as far as Bhaberchar by midday.

Stranded passengers expressed frustration and exhaustion.

Tanjia Akter, heading towards a wedding in Cumilla's Devidwar with her family, said their microbus had passed Narayanganj smoothly but got stuck in Gazaria around 12:15pm.

"We haven't moved in 45 minutes. We're suffering, especially with our children in the vehicle," she told The Daily Star at around 1:10pm.

Another commuter, Sheikh Amin, said he had been stuck in Cumilla's Gauripur area for nearly two hours while heading to the same district from Dhaka.