August 23, 2024
DHAKA – Flash floods induced by heavy rains and rush of water from upstream have caught millions of people off guard, giving them no time to evacuate their homes across Chattogram and Sylhet divisions over the last two days.
At least five people drowned and 10 others went missing as rivers burst their banks submerging vast swathes of land.
Railway communications in the two divisions were suspended yesterday and the authorities cancelled 26 trains.
The situation in Cumilla, Noakhali and Feni was particularly worrying as the Muhuri and Feni rivers kept swelling throughout yesterday.
All the major rivers in the northeastern and eastern regions were overflowing.
The other affected districts are Laxmipur, Brahmanbaria, Chattogram, Rangamati, Khagrachhari, Moulvibazar, Habiganj, Sylhet, and Cox’s Bazar.
It is likely that there will be less rain today and the level of water will begin to fall tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, according to Sarkar Udoy Raihan, executive engineer at the flood forecasting centre.
According to the Chief Adviser’s Press Wing, more than 36.45 lakh people were trapped by the floods.
Three people drowned in Ramu, Cox’s Bazar, and one each in Feni and Brahmanbaria yesterday.
The photo were taken in Feni yesterday, Aug 22. PHOTO: THE DAILY STAR
Only the victims of Ramu have been identified: Amjad Hossain, 22, son of Chhayed Hossain; Rabiul Alam, 35, son of Saleh Ahmed; and Coching Rakhine, 50, said Abul Kashim, a union parishad member.
The government said 10 people went missing in Cumilla as flash floods hit the villages hard there.
In Feni, over 300,000 people were stranded in the town and six upazilas with roads being inaccessible.
“I have never seen floodwaters rise this high. The water has reached up to the first floor of my house,” said Alam Manik, a resident of Chhanua area in Feni town.
According to government data, 154,661 people are stranded in 12 upazilas of Cumilla and 184,900 people in eight upazilas of Noakhali.
Floods are wreaking havoc in nine upazilas in Chattogram, seven in Moulvibazar, eight in Khagrachhari, five in Habiganj, two in Brahmanbaria, and three in Sylhet.
At least 12,20,877 people are stranded in these districts.
In Burichang upazila of Cumilla, an embankment along the Gumti river was washed away late last night, said officials, adding that the flood situation may worsen in Burichang and Brahmanpara upazilas.
The photo were taken in Feni yesterday, Aug 22. PHOTO: THE DAILY STAR
The government deployed 492 medical teams and opened 2,246 shelters where 82,694 people and 7,755 cattle took refuge in these districts.
Over 13,000 people are stranded in Rangamati and 80,000 in Cox’s Bazar.
The disaster management ministry allocated Tk 3.32 crore; 19,650 tonnes of rice; and 15,000 packs of food, said a statement.
Traffic on the Dhaka-Chattogram highway was disrupted after Cumilla’s Chauddagram went under water early yesterday.
Of the 6,986 cell phone towers in the affected districts, 1,510 went out of order, leaving thousands with no signal on their phones.
More than 41 percent of the towers in Feni and Khagrachhari were inoperative.
The Department of Posts and Telecommunications sent several V-Sat units with the help of the Bangladesh Satellite Company to the districts to improve telecommunications.
Deputy commissioners of the districts were asked to work in coordination with student organisers, the army, medics, and volunteers.
The disaster management opened a hotline — 0255101115 — to provide information and assistance.
More than 160 army personnel in 40 rescue vehicles, 71 navy personnel in eight rescue vehicles, and boats of border guards were sent to Feni. A water treatment plant has been set up there.