Flood threatens the capital

Ravaging the northern and northeastern Bangladesh, the flood now threatens the capital as all the rivers surrounding the city are showing rising trend.

The water levels in the Buriganga, Balu, Turag and Shitalakkhya have increased and many areas in the city would get inundated if the rains continued, says the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC). 

Though the flood situation in the northern districts improved yesterday, it worsened in the central part of the country.

Many low-lying areas in Dhaka and its neighbouring districts, including Narayanganj, Munshiganj and Gazipur, have already been flooded, causing sufferings to thousands of people there.

The FFWC said floodwater would enter the capital if the water level in the Balu river increased by another 27 centimetres crossing the danger mark.

The Tongi canal has also swelled. Its water level was just 38 centimetres below the danger mark, showed a FFWC flood map.

Nearly 100 villages have been inundated in Dohar in Dhaka and Sreenagar and Lohajang in Munshiganj as the water level of the Padma has increased, report our correspondents after visiting the areas.

The mighty river has been eroding houses and other establishments.

"The river devoured a house at night. Those inside somehow managed to escape. But they could not take anything with them,” said Iqbal Hossain of Malikanda village in Dohar's Narisha union yesterday.

“Most of the houses in our village have remained inundated for over a week. Many people have left this village and gone to other places after losing their houses in the flood,” he said.

Many villagers were cooking using LPG cylinders as their kitchens were partially submerged. 

The schools in the area were shut.

Local people were also facing difficulties in keeping their cattle safe.

Tapu Begum, a woman from Brahmandi village in Munshiganj's Lohajang, said her family had been left marooned for the last eight days. She was also not being able to feed her three cows.

To escape the flood, this family moved to Dohar from Faridpur's Sadarpur upazila with whatever they could save on Saturday. However, they found many low-lying places of the upazila in Dhaka inundated as well. Photo: Anisur Rahman

The FFWC said the flood situation in the northern region would continue to improve as the water levels of the Jamuna, Dharla, Teesta and Dudhkumar rivers were going down.

It also said the flood situation at the Meghna basin would improve as the water level of the Surma river was falling.

The water level of the Padma was increasing but it was yet to cross the danger level, said the FFWC.

People in the northern and northeastern flood-hit areas, especially those in remote places, continued to suffer due to lack of food and clean drinking water yesterday.

Meanwhile, a two-year-old child drowned in floodwater in Omar Majid union of Kurigram's Rajarhat upazila yesterday morning.

The victim was identified as Shajjad Hossain Rahat, son of Anisur Rahman of Bakshipara village.