Bangladesh hit by one of the worst floodings ever seen
An estimated 7.2 million people have been affected and are in desperate need of shelter and emergency relief after heavy monsoon rains hit Bangladesh, causing record-breaking floods.
From early June, torrential rain and upstream water have completely submerged around 94% of the town of Sunamganj and 84% of Sylhet districts, in northeastern Bangladesh, bordering the Meghalaya state of India.1
Parts of Meghalaya have experienced the highest amount of rainfall in decades, which has led to the overflowing of large river systems running between India and Bangladesh and completely swallowing surrounding areas.
“We have never seen this sort of flooding in our living memories in that region,” said Bangladesh Red Crescent Society Secretary General Kazi Shofiqul Azam.
“Hundreds of thousands of people took refuge as their houses went under water and almost all their neighborhoods inundated. Large parts of Sunamganj and Sylhet were completely cut off due to severe disruption of road communication and power cuts.”
“Within just a month, Sylhet and Sunamganj have been flooded and the scale of devastation this time is so much more than the previous ones. We are scaling up our operations alongside Bangladesh Red Crescent due the urgency of the situation,” IFRC Head of Bangladesh Country Delegation Sanjeev Kafley said.
As predicted, the cumulative amount of rain exceeded 122 years record in NE Bangladesh area and it is worse than the 1998 and 2004 floods as it struck at a time when the people were recovering from the earlier flood that hit in late May, it swept away homes and inundated farmlands, forcing families to seek shelter on higher ground.2
The conditions inside evacuation shelters are challenging with overcrowding, disruption to power supplies leading to lack of lighting, insufficient safe spaces for women and children as well as damage to the water supplies, latrines and other sanitation facilities which are inadequate for the sheltering population.
References:
1 Millions in Bangladesh impacted by one of the worst floodings ever seen – IFRC – June 28, 2022
2 UNICEF Bangladesh Humanitarian Situation Report No. 4 (North-eastern Flood) – June 28, 2022
Featured image credit: Bangladesh Red Crescent Society (BDRCS)
If you value what we do here, create your ad-free account and support our journalism.
Your support makes a difference
Dear valued reader,
We hope that our website has been a valuable resource for you.
The reality is that it takes a lot of time, effort, and resources to maintain and grow this website. We rely on the support of readers like you to keep providing high-quality content.
If you have found our website to be helpful, please consider making a contribution to help us continue to bring you the information you need. Your support means the world to us and helps us to keep doing what we love.
Support us by choosing your support level – Silver, Gold or Platinum. Other support options include Patreon pledges and sending us a one-off payment using PayPal.
Thank you for your consideration. Your support is greatly appreciated.
Sincerely,
Teo Blašković
Commenting rules and guidelines
We value the thoughts and opinions of our readers and welcome healthy discussions on our website. In order to maintain a respectful and positive community, we ask that all commenters follow these rules:
We reserve the right to remove any comments that violate these rules. By commenting on our website, you agree to abide by these guidelines. Thank you for helping to create a positive and welcoming environment for all.