The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has announced the resumption of train services on the Port Harcourt to Aba route starting Tuesday.
The service was suspended for repairs after a locomotive broke down on September 3rd, an incident that left passengers stranded and was captured in a viral social media video.
The breakdown occurred near Imo River at approximately 4:22 PM while the train was en route from Port Harcourt to Aba. Despite efforts by engineers to fix the “unusual fault” on the spot, the issues persisted.
In response, the NRC deployed a rescue engine to recover the faulty train. The corporation stated that stranded passengers were either assisted in finding alternative transportation or safely conveyed back.
Onyedikachi Onovo, spokesperson for the NRC’s eastern district, confirmed that the faulty locomotive has been moved to Port Harcourt for thorough repairs to ensure it meets enhanced quality control standards before returning to service.
The NRC has apologized for the disruption and advised all affected passengers to visit stations in Port Harcourt or Aba with proof of payment to be eligible for a refund or a replacement train ride.
The corporation reiterated its commitment to safety, reliability, and customer satisfaction.
Dele Fashomi, seasoned journalist and communication teacher, is a holder of Master of Arts degree in Communication and Language Arts from the University of Ibadan in 1992/93.
Earlier, he had bagged a Bachelor degree from the same university in 1984, after which he proceeded to the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos, in 1990, for a postgraduate diploma in Journalism.
He had done many courses in communication, including the EU-BBC Editing Course in 2002.
Mr. Fashomi combines effectively the practice, research and teaching of communication. And to date, he has published two academic works in communication: Issues in Communication Technology and Policy (2010) and Economic and Social Issues in Advertising and PR (2013).
He had his first break in the Nigerian media in Concord Newspapers in 1990 and today, he has over two and half decades experience earned in several newspapers.
He has been part of many start-ups, such as The Republic (1987), The Comet (1999), The Anchor 2001 – 2002; Sun Newspapers (2003); Westerner newsmagazine (2005 – 2010) as Editor; National Life (2011) as Sunday Editor, and Newswatch Newspapers (2012- 2016) as Daily Editor.
Dele Fashomi is now the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Newstide247.com newspaper online, which he started in July 2015. He is also into biography writing, with many books in his trail, some of which he wrote alone and one he co- authored with his mentor, Mr Dare Babarinsa, entitled: Olabiyi Durojaiye – DARE TO BE DiFFERENT. He also guided and collaborated with Pa Olatunji Odusanya in writing his autobiography – AGAINST ALL ODDS. There are many other books in the works under his pen.
