News Desk :
Major rivers in Bangladesh continued to swell on Sunday following the incessant rains and onrush of water from the upstream, inundating many areas in Sunamganj, Bogura, Gaibandha, Sirajganj, Kurigram and Nilphamari districts newly.
Flash floods, triggered by swelling water level of River Surma, have inundated Sunamganj town and 11 upazilas of the district, rendering thousands of people marooned.
Flood water continued rising in Nabinagar, Soloshahar, Kajir point, Ukil para, Boropata, Tegharia, Sahebbibir ghat, Bihari point, Sultanpur, Purbo o Poschimpara and other areas in the district town.
Shops and markets remained shut in Paschimbazar, Modhyobazar, Purbobaar areas in the town.
Road communications on Sunamganj-Bishwambarpur road, Tahirpur-Anwarpur, Sunamganj-Ambari, and Sunamganj-Doarabazar road were interrupted while some villages of Dharmapasha upazila’s Chamardi union went under knee-deep water.
Sobibur Rahman, Executive Engineer, Sunamganj Water Development Board (WDB), said the Surma River was flowing 46cm above the danger level at 6pm on Saturday while Jadukata River was flowing 57cm above the danger level.
Rahman also said that 190mm rain was recorded in the last 24 hours in Sunamganj until Saturday evening while 902mm rain, highest of the season, was recorded in 72 hours in Cherapujni in India until Saturday noon.
Dharmapasha Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Muntasir Hasan Palash, said eight families took shelter in a local madrasa and food were provided.
Bishwambarpur UNO Samir Bishwas said flood water entered the ground floor of his house.
Meanwhile, flood water started entering Sohala village in Tahirpur upazila as an embankment collapsed in the south side of the village.
District Water Development Board (WDB) sources said water continued rising in Surma, Jadukata, Chalti, Khasiamara, Chelanadi, Maharam, Rokti, Boulai and Someshwari Rivers in the district.
Sunamganj Municipality Mayor Nader Bakht said he visited different areas the municipality and found that water entered fifty percent houses in the town.
Deputy Commissioner Md Abdul Ahad said District Disaster Management Committee held a meeting on Saturday evening.
Shelter Centre and Control Rooms were opened in each upazila of the district, said the DC adding that 410mts rice, Tk 29.70 lakh was allotted for food-hit areas.
Besides, heavy rainfall and rising water from the upstream caused flash floods in char areas under six upazilas of Bogura and Gaibandha over last couple of days.
The water level of the Brahmaputra, Jamuna and Ghaghot rivers has increased due to heavy rainfall and has been flowing above danger level, said Md Mahbubur Rahman, executive engineer of the Bogura Water Development Broad.
Houses of hundreds of families and thousands of hectares of land remain flooded for couple of days, said Abdul Motin, Deputy Commissioner of Gaibandha.
The affected chars have been located in Bogura’s Sonatala and Sariakandi upazilas and Gaibandha’s Sadar, Saghata, Fulchari and Sundarganj upazila, report our local correspondent.
The chars are: Noapara, Char Shimul Taer, Chakratimath, Char Manik Dair, Char Karnibari, Vangurgacha, Kuripara Char, Dighapara Char, Batir Char.
Meanwhile, the flood situation has aggravated in Sirajganj, as Jamuna River is flowing above danger level this morning, leaving over 50,000 families in five upazilas of the district marooned.
The flood-hit upazilas are Sirajganj Sadar, Shahzadpur, Chowhali, Kazipur and Belkuchi, reports our Pabna correspondent.
Kumar Bishwas Ranajit, Assistant Engineer of Sirajganj Water Development Board, said, “The danger level at Jamuna is 13.35 metres at the hard point. But Jamuna was flowing at 13.41 metres at the point at about 6:00am today.”
The upstream rush of water and excessive rains in the hilly areas causedthe water level to rise in Jamuna, he added.
As the Jamuna has swelled, the low laying areas around the river have gone under water. Water has entered the houses in these areas.
Over 2.5 lakh people of over 50,000 families of the flood-affected areas remain waterlogged, according to district relief and rehabilitation office, Sirajganj.
“The real scenario of flood-hit people is yet to be available. We have already asked union parishad chairmen of the flood-hit areas to prepare a list of the damage,” said Md. Abdur Rahim, district relief and rehabilitation officer.
A total of 172 flood centers have already opened in the five upazilas but nobody came to the flood centre till today, said Rahim.
Besides, flood situation in Nilphamari and Kurigram deteriorated further on Sunday as water levels of Teesta, Brahmaputra and Dharla Rivers marked rise inundating fresh areas.
In Kurigram, over one lakh people have been affected as flood water submerged vast areas.
According to Water Development Board (WDB) sources, the Dharla River was flowing 62cm above the danger level at Bridge Point and the Brahmaputra was flowing 64cm above the danger line at Chilmari point in the morning.
One lakh people in 22 unions of nine upazilas in the district have been marooned and water in 16 local rivers kept rising until Sunday morning.
According to local sources, over 200 houses in the district went into the gorge of local rivers in the last week.
Kurigram Deputy Commissioner Rezaul Karim said they have been working to take the flood-hit people to safer places while 302mts rice and Tk 36.50 was allotted in upazila level.
District Department of Agricultural Extension Department (DAE) sources said jute on 1,075 hectares, Aman seed-bed on 38 hectares, Aush on 372 hectares, Sesame on 110 hectares, chilli on 10 hectares were damaged.
In Nilphamari, Teesta River was flowing 15cm above the danger level at Daliya Teesta Barrage Point at 6am.
Low-lying areas and chars were inundated, leaving many people marooned.
Fifteen chars in Purbochatnai, Tepakhribari, Khogakhoribari, Khalisha Chapani, Jhunagacha Chapani and Goyabari areas of Dimla upazila, Golmunda, Shoulmari and Dauabari areas of Jaldhaka upazila were flooded, said local union parishad representatives.
Rabiul Islam, executive engineer, Dalia Division, WDB, said they have opened 44 water gates of Teesta Barrage as water is flowing above the danger level.
On Sunday, flood water also entered in the low-lying areas in Kalmakanda Upazila of Netrakona.
Around 3000 families of about 50 villages under eight unions of the upazila were marooned in flood waters.
The floods also damaged fields of Aman paddy seeds, roads, ponds, trees and houses.
Kalmakanda Upazila Agriculture official Md Faruk Ahmed said 55mm rain was recorded till Sunday morning in the upazila.
Around 14 acre fields of Aman paddy seeds have been inundated, the official added.
Upazila Nirbahi Officer Md Sohel Rana and the upazila chairman Abdul Khalek Talukder visited the flood-hit areas.
They said cash money and rice are being distributed among the flood-hit people and the upazila administration has all kind of preparation to overcome the disaster.
