Deaths rise, more people get stranded as flood situation worsens

Aminul Islam Munshi, 51, a farmer from Ramjibanpur village in Mohanganj's Samaj Sahildeo union, was cutting grass for his cattle. He knew that even if the packets of dry food – being sent as relief – reached him, it would not feed his cows and goats. Even as the waters swelled around him, he continued with his task.

Suddenly, he vanished below the water. His body was later found by his relatives.

As the flood situation worsens and draws towards the centre of the country, it has already taken 18 lives and rendered millions homeless.

The flood situation has deteriorated in nine upazilas of Netrakona, with water only receding in Durgapur.

At least 17 more districts in the northern and central parts of the country are at risk of flooding, the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre warned on Sunday.

Almost 80% of Sylhet and 90% of Sunamganj is under water. 

More than 40 lakh people have been marooned due to heavy showers and continuous onrush of water from upstream areas in India.

In the neighbouring country's Cherrapunji in Meghalaya, the district had recorded 97 centimetres rainfall over 24 hours on Friday, the third-highest quantity of rainfall recorded there in the last 122 years.

Over 300 villages in Moulvibazar have been inundated. In the district's Baralekha upazila, 200 villages under 10 unions have been submerged.

As the country grapples with how to deal with the growing disaster, some fearing which could be the worst in 20 years, experts say the blame squarely lies on the feet of human intervention.

Gawher Nayeem Wahra, member secretary of the Foundation for Disaster Forum, in an interview with The Business Standard, said human intervention had destroyed the 124km passage for discharging stormwater from Cherrapunji to Bhairab. 

"The huge amount of silt coming with the downpours flows down not only the tributaries and distributaries, but also the flood plains. But we have developed a road network blocking the drainage passage," he said, adding it was clear that this was an anthropogenic cause.

He also faulted lack of waste management in many districts suffering the brunt of the floods.

Climate experts, meanwhile, have said the country's geographical position means it will become prone to more extreme weather events in the future. 

Waiting for the calm

In Netrakona's Khaliajuri Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Ariful Islam could not catch a breath. In between his duty, he would survey the watery landscape from the second floor of the hospital he was working from.

Even his house had waist-deep water on the ground floor. He said most of the government buildings and residential buildings of officers and employees of Khaliajuri upazila Sadar have been submerged in the flood waters.

Many of the shelters, too, are now under water.

"All 60 villages in seven unions of the upazila have been flooded. Most of the people living in these villages have become unsafe due to flood waters. Many families have stopped cooking. The affected families have taken shelter in 52 shelters," he said.

The situation has reached such a stage that shelters have to be opened in the office of the UNO and also in the Upazila Health Complex.

The shelters themselves are packed with people, goats, chickens, cows, dogs and cats.

Ritish Sarkar, of Shampur village in Khaliajuri, said that there was not a single house in the village which was not flooded.

"No one can get out of the house, except on boats. People can't go to the market. Without fuel, even cooking isn't possible," he said.

Millions of people have taken refuge in 324 shelters of the district.

In Habiganj, the situation was no different. According to the District Flood Control Room, 72 unions of 10 upazilas have been flooded so far.

About 3,65,560 people have been directly affected by the floods. Of these, 1,60,690 women, children and people with disabilities have sought refuge in 324 shelters.

Till Sunday afternoon, flood waters entered 21 unions in the district, while the waters continued to rise.

People in at least 100 villages are surviving without food and barely any clean water.

As floodwaters began to recede in some areas, the damage caused is slowly becoming visible. 

A rebuild is the only thing in the offing.

"The floods have taken everything. Cows, chickens, everything. I couldn't save anything," Ershad Mia, a resident of Bilajur area of ​​Companiganj upazila of Sylhet, said, his eyes firmly closed.
Till date, Companiganj upazila is the worst affected by the ongoing floods in Sylhet, with almost the entirety of the upazila submerged. 

Rescue efforts underway

One hundred and thirty members of the 19th Infantry Division of the Army have been conducting rescue operations in Netrokona since Sunday morning. Several families have been rescued using speedboats.

A rescue boat of the Bangladesh army also rescued  21 Dhaka University students, among others, who were stuck mid-river Saturday night while trying to reach Sylhet from flood-hit Sunamganj.

Habinganj District Civil Surgeon Selim Mia said 69 medical teams were working in the flood-hit areas, supplying water purification tablets, saline and medicines.

Deputy Commissioner Anjana Khan Majlish said 69 metric tonnes of rice, Tk3 lakh in cash and 1,300 packets of dry food had been distributed in the flood-hit areas till Sunday afternoon.

Apart from this, the Red Crescent Society is also distributing relief in the affected upazilas.

Health Minister Zahid Malek, meanwhile, said 4,000 medical teams are also ready to be deployed in the 11 flood-hit districts of the country.

He said the leave of all health workers at different levels in Sylhet region have been cancelled.

Zahid also said as the waters had receded, different patients would be relocated as needed.

Asked if a floating medical centre would be set up, he said the health ministry did not have its own helicopter, water ambulance or any other transport system. "We will take up the matter with the government."

In Sylhet, Chief of Army Staff General SM Shafiuddin Ahmed visited various flood affected areas on Sunday. During the visit, he distributed relief items among the flood victims at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Hi-Tech Park and nearby flood-hit areas of Companiganj Upazila and spoke to the flood-affected people, a press release said.

He urged the army to conduct their duties sincerely and promised assistance in the aftermath of the floods.

The government allocated another Tk1 crore for Sylhet and Sunamganj districts to distribute as humanitarian aid.

The Relief and Disaster Management Ministry on Sunday (19 June) allocated Tk50 lakh for Sylhet and Tk50 lakh for Sunamganj, said a press release. 

Earlier from 17 May to 18 June 1720 metric tonnes of rice, Tk2,76,00,000 and 58,000 packets of dried and other food items were distributed in the recent floods in 11 districts of the country.
 
PM set for Sylhet visit on Tuesday

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is also set to visit the Sylhet region on Tuesday, premier's Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim confirmed, saying she would fly to Sylhet by helicopter that morning to inspect the flood situation.

Several units of the Bangladesh Army started rescue operations in flood-hit Sylhet and Sunamganj districts on Friday afternoon.
The Bangladesh Navy joined the rescue efforts on Saturday.
 
Connectivity resuming

The rail connectivity with Sylhet resumed on Sunday after the flood water level dropped. 

"Dhaka-Sylhet rail communication resumed as flood waters receded from the railway station," Sylhet Railway Station Manager Nurul Islam told the media. 

Train services between Dhaka and Sylhet were suspended on Saturday (18 June) as most of the lines there went under flood water.

On Friday, flight operations at Sylhet Osmani International Airport were suspended for three days after flood water reached the runway.

Meanwhile, the Association of Mobile Telecom Operators of Bangladesh (AMTOB) said the mobile operators are working hard to keep the networks operational in flood-hit areas.

Due to power disruption in Sunamganj and Netrokona districts, they are trying to keep the network running with generators, said the AMTOB in a written statement on Sunday.

However, they are facing difficulty in reaching the generators at the sites due to the disruption in road communication.

The government has also decided to use the Bangabandhu Satellite-1 to reestablish emergency telecommunication services in Sylhet, Sunamganj, Natrekona and other flood-hit districts of the country's northern region.

The Bangladesh Satellite Company Limited (BSCL) is providing all necessary equipment to the rescuers to ensure uninterrupted internet and other telecommunication facilities in remote areas.

The move comes following the directives of Post and Telecommunication Minister Mustafa Jabbar, reads a press release issued on Sunday.

Besides, 23 more VSAT devices will be provided to the office of the Sylhet divisional commissioner which will allow it to reestablish communication with more flood-affected areas of the region.