About 27 killed in floods in Bangladesh; hundreds of thousands affected

Flash floods triggered by incessant rains have left at least 27 people dead and nearly six hundred thousand others marooned in nearly two dozen districts in Bangladesh, officials said on Monday.

According to Press Trust of India, the unrelenting flow of water from upstream regions coupled with monsoon rains has flooded as many as 20 districts with the flooding spreading to other parts, officials said.

The Disaster Management Ministry said that 27 people have died in the floods as monsoon grasped 20 of the country’s 64 administrative districts.

The deluge has affected some 586,000 people, forcing 368,586 of them to take refuge in makeshift shelters as the country witnesses the second round of floods since June.

Disaster Management Minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury said that government’s preparedness was underway to face a greater disaster in view of severe flooding in upstream countries like, China, India, Nepal and Bhutan.

His comments came as expert feared the deluge to engulf vast part of the riverine nation in the coming weeks, causing a prolonged flooding.

The Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC) records suggest that water levels in three out of four river basins were rising simultaneously.

If there are more rains at the end of August, at least 25 districts will be affected by floods, the FFWC predicted.

The water levels will keep rising as India’s northeastern states will see “heavy to very heavy” rains, it said.

“We are taking all precautionary measures keeping the forecast in mind,” Department of Disaster Management Director General Reaz Ahmed said.

Around 60,000 families in Kurigram and at least 400 families in Nilphamari have been marooned.

Railway officials said train services in several internal routes remain suspended for the past two days as water washed away soil and stones underneath the railway tracks.

Onrush of waters in the major Brahmaputra river and its tributaries coupled with heavy monsoon rains in the district submerged railway tracks forcing authorities to suspend train services in Dinajpur district.

Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday ordered procurement of food grains from abroad to face any possible shortfall against the backdrop of impending deluge.

Bangladesh witnessed a setback in crop production two months ago when a prolonged flash flood washed away standing crops in north-eastern region.

TV footages showed people were moving in boats in northern districts as swollen river waters inundated flood plains and submerged infrastructures.

SS