Chittagong city embankment in danger (video)

Cracks have started to appear on parts of the Chittagong city embankments from being hit by the mighty waves of the Bay of Bengal. The embankment, which stretches along the whole west perimeter of the city, has been most damaged in its south side in Patenga’s Khejurtola, Charpara, and Muslimabad areas.

In these areas, there are waves have caused major damages to three locations and minor to medium damages to 10 to 15 locations.

Locals fear that if the condition persists, the embankment may not survive the mighty waves during high tide on nights of new moon or full moon. So, the whole southern area of city - Patenga and South Halishahar would go under water. Two and a half lakh people would be affected by this. it would also damage the industries and important settlements in the area including the international airport, Eastern Refinery Limited, oil depots and Chittagong EPZs.

The 21.7 kilometer embankment was built from 1965 to 1970 to save Patenga, Halishahar and Kattali areas of the city’s west cost. Though 4.24 kilometers area of the embankment in Patenga was reinforced with boulder from 1992-1996, the area is still badly damaged due to the regular strike of powerful waves. Locals fear that the area might get flooded if the damaged parts are not repaired immediately.