Train Delay at the Border Due to Cigarette Smuggling: Hundreds of Passengers Waited for 9 Hours.

Train Delay Due to Cigarette Smuggling

According to ТСН: At the railway checkpoint "Yahodyn", Ukrainian border guards discovered a batch of cigarettes that a train conductor was trying to smuggle into Poland. As a result of the inspection, more than 400 passengers had to wait at the border for nine hours, and some of them missed their trains in Chełm.

"On train 119 Dnipro-Chełm, approximately 150 blocks of cigarettes were found by the train staff, resulting in the train's delay at the border. The last train from Chełm was at 18:28 to Warsaw," wrote passenger Anya Ponomarenko, who was on this train.

According to the schedule, the train "Dnipro - Chełm" was supposed to arrive at the railway checkpoint "Yahodyn" at 15:14 and at the final destination - Chełm - at 17:52. The ticket cost was about 3900 hryvnias.

Anya reported that during the inspection, the border guards discovered smuggled cigarettes hidden in the ventilation openings in the compartment next to her seat. Due to this incident, the train manager and conductor were removed, and more than seven carriages with passengers remained blocked at the border. The border service noted that the delay was related to the need for investigative actions.

According to Anya, passengers tried to contact "Ukrzaliznytsia" through the hotline and social networks, but did not receive any responses.

Due to the delay at the station in the Polish city of Chełm, more than fifty passengers had to wait for the arrival of the train. Other trains to Poland also experienced delays, including train No. 0940 "Chełm - Kharkiv". The situation was complicated by the fact that the local railway station was under renovation: people had to wait in the cold or in a small trailer that temporarily served as a station.

"I am waiting for the train in Chełm. Departure is supposed to be in 15 minutes, but there is no train, no information, and no station staff are here. In the trailers that serve as waiting rooms, there are more than 50 people, there is not enough air, there are no other options to wait, and it’s freezing outside," witnesses share on social networks.

Around midnight, Anya Ponomarenko reported that the train "Dnipro - Chełm" finally departed from the checkpoint "Yahodyn". Passengers were informed that buses would be waiting for them upon arrival in Chełm for further transport to Warsaw.

Recall that earlier it was reported that Ukrainian customs officers prevented an attempt to illegally export currency from Ukraine to Canada.

This incident highlights the serious problems faced by border guards regarding smuggling, as well as the challenges passengers encounter due to delays. Several hours of waiting in the cold without proper information caused dissatisfaction among passengers, who hope for improved service in the future.