Bridge Collapse severs Rangamati-Bandarban Road Link Following Heavy Downpours

Direct road communication between the two hill districts of Rangamati and Bandarban has ground to a complete halt after a vital bridge collapsed in the Rangunia upazila of Chittagong. The structural failure was triggered by relentless torrential rain and a sudden surge of flash floods rushing down from the surrounding hills.

The incident occurred during the early hours of Saturday in the Dudhpukuria area under Padua union of Rangunia. The collapse has completely blocked all categories of vehicular movement on the regional highway. Consequently, hundreds of vehicles remain stranded on both sides of the fractured crossing, causing immense suffering to thousands of commuters.

Local residents and officials from the Roads and Highways Department (RHD) revealed that the region had been experiencing severe water currents since Friday night due to the heavy downpours. The immense volume of water eventually breached an embankment near a local rubber dam. The unchecked, raging currents then slammed into the bridge infrastructure, washing away a significant section of the crossing under the cover of darkness. The sudden disruption has left commuters, including office-goers, students, and individuals requiring emergency medical attention, completely stranded.

Although the collapsed bridge is geographically located within the Rangunia upazila of Chittagong district, its administrative jurisdiction and maintenance fall under the Bandarban RHD division. Upon receiving reports of the disaster, engineering teams attempted to mobilise to the site to assess the damage, but their efforts have been severely hampered by regional flooding.

Mo. Sakhawat Hossain, the Executive Engineer of the Bandarban Roads and Highways Department, confirmed the severity of the situation to our representative. Speaking around midday on Saturday, he explained that the primary deployment routes from Bandarban are currently impassable. Roads and smaller bridges in the Balaghata and Swarnamandir areas are completely submerged under floodwaters, preventing the RHD response teams from reaching the affected site in Rangunia.

The Executive Engineer assured the public that as soon as the water levels recede sufficiently, engineers will work on installing a temporary Bailey bridge to restore a basic traffic connection. However, due to the unpredictable monsoon weather and the extent of the regional inundation, the authorities cannot yet provide a definitive timeline for when normal transport links will be fully restored.