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Published : 04 Oct 2022, 08:27 PM
Ratan Sikdar Shanto, a small business owner, lives with his wife and their children in the Abdullahpur dam area. But his wife was in for a rude awakening on Tuesday when she returned from their son’s school, only to find there was no power or water supply at home.
Drained by the sweltering heat, she and her two children climbed up to their rooftop for some respite. But worries about the lack of water lingered in the back of her mind.
Shanto called her over the phone in the afternoon and asked her to gather some water to drink from nearby areas.
“We get water from a deep tube well and store it in bottles. I’m at my wit's end. I may have to draw water from the reserves after returning home at night,” he said.
Power outages hit large swathes of Dhaka, Chattogram, Sylhet and Mymensingh divisions after a transmission line of the national grid tripped, according to officials.
The trouble started around 2 pm on Tuesday due to a 'technical glitch', Power Grid Company of Bangladesh or PGCB said.
State Minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak said the power supply had normalised in some areas, but it could take until 8 pm to restore the connection to Dhaka and 9 pm to Chattogram.
Along with a water supply crisis, the outage also hampered other aspects of daily life, such as cooking, bathing and moving up and down tall buildings in lifts.
Farah Tanzim Titli, a teacher at Kushtia Islami University’s Department of Economics, is currently on vacation. She is staying in a flat owned by her family at Lalmatia’s National Housing. The building she resides in comprises 130 flats.
“Power went out at 2 pm. The generator was providing back up but that, too, juiced out. We’re used to the generator powering us during outages, so we had nothing else as a failsafe.”
Their lift had already shut down and concerns grew over other utilities. “My mother lives in the building beside us and they have no water. So it’s clear that the power outage will trigger other issues.”
“Our sufferings will amplify if this continues.”
Mesbah Uddin Babul, a resident of the densely-populated Lalbagh area in Old Dhaka, also suffered a water supply cut following the outage. “The mosque made an announcement, asking us to perform ablution and go pray.”
Bablu mentioned that his relatives and acquaintances from Chawkbazar, Azimpur and Bakhshibazar areas were going through similar tribulations.
Hira Akhter, a housewife from Mirpur 1, said: “The power went out in the hour when we take baths and the kids return from school. But water supply stopped a half hour after the power cut. One of us was in the middle of taking a bath. The children are whining in the heat and aren’t calming down at all. There’s no end to our sufferings.”
Nusrat Jahan, a student of Shaheed Bir Uttam Lt Anwar Girls’ College, resides in a private hostel in Farmgate. “I was having lunch when the outage hit. I initially thought it’ll be back, but it’s not yet.
“It’s baking in my room. There is no drinking water in the hostel. The more glaring issue is that my home’s lost internet connectivity, there’s no network at all. I can’t speak with my mother back home.”
LONG QUEUES FOR DIESEL
Long queues have formed at refuelling stations in Dhaka as offices and homes using electricity generators have run out of fuel due to the hours-long power outage.
People started lining up for diesel with empty containers on Tuesday afternoon during the outage.
Mohammad Jewel, who works at a commercial building in Banani, came to Crescent Petrol Pump in Mohakhali for diesel.
He said the 100-litre reserve for the building’s power generator almost dried up after running for hours on end. “The entire building will go dark and the lift will stop if the outage continues for some more time.”
“It’s a long queue. It appears it’ll be difficult to get oil,” said Mohammad Yusuf, a worker of an apartment building in Gulshan-1.
Arif Hossain, the refuelling station’s cashier, said the demand for diesel rose sharply due to the outage, but they have sufficient stock.
Kabir Hossain, the cashier of Gulshan Service Station, said they sold more than 10,000 litres from the afternoon to evening while their usual daily sale is around 5,000 litres.
He said the depot was supposed to be closed on Wednesday for Durga Puja. “We’ll be able to collect oil if the depot remains open due to the situation.”
Hafiz Uddin, an autorickshaw driver, said he failed to get CNG at a refuelling station in Sayedabad as it closed after 7 pm due to darkness.
State Minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak said it would take up to 8 pm to restore the connection to Dhaka.
PATIENTS SUFFER AT HOSPITALS
The hospitals in Dhaka continued emergency services, such as surgeries and intensive care, by using backup generators, but patients suffered in the general wards and other units with the fans and lights off.
At the National Institute of Diseases of the Chest and Hospital, relatives used hand fans to comfort the patients. Some lit candles. In one ward, three out of 12 ceiling fans were working. All the lights were off.
Imam Mahadi, a seven-year-old patient, lay on a mattress on the floor and his mother Mariam used a piece of paper as a hand fan. “He doesn’t want to be on the bed because it’s hot there,” said Mariam.
Asthma patient Nurul Islam said he sent his son to buy a rechargeable fan because he cannot tolerate excessive cold or heat due to his condition.
Sayeeda Begum, a patient’s relative, said it was difficult to use the toilet in the dark because they needed to hold mobile phones for light while supporting the patient.
A nurse said she was unsure how long the electricity generator would work.
The situation was better at the National Institute of Cancer Research and Hospital. The wards had lights, but not all fans were working. Patients in the beds where the fans were not working suffered due to heat.
The lights were on but no fan was working at the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases. “This is terrible,” said Masum Mia, a patient’s relative.
