After rescue from flooded Sunamganj, students tell a tale of horror

The passengers felt like it was the last day of their life when the launch hit a shoal and tilted to a side during heavy rains while furrowing through strong currents in the overflowing Surma river amid jade black darkness, pierced by the lightning strikes.

A group of Dhaka University students were on board the Sylhet-bound vessel after they were rescued from heavily flooded Sunamganj. The students were stranded during a pleasure trip to the Haor or wetland region. All but one student were from the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism. Little did they know that nature would show its wrath, putting their lives at risk.

The students finally returned to Dhaka with the help of the army. Many of them had a nervous breakdown while being trapped inside the launch for hours in the dead of night. Some of them offered apologies to each other, thinking their time is over, while some others tried to boost the morale of their friends.

The group started for Sunamganj on Jun 14 for a two-day trip and spent Jun 15 at Tanguar Haor and Neeladri Lake. They were scheduled to visit Shimulbagan and Barikka Tila on Thursday and return to Dhaka.

But as they set off to Shimulbagan on Thursday morning, it started raining intensely, said Mizanur Rahman, one of the students, in an interview with bdnews24.com.

“Heavy downpour and strong currents prevented our boat from going forward. As it ran out of engine fuel, we had no option but to get off at Bhishwambharpur. But it was flooded as well.”

Some local auto-rickshaw drivers agreed to take the group to a place called Charpol. Braving the rains and floodwater, they reached Charpol in the evening.

The roads were submerged and currents were strong. They saw one motorcycle flushing away with its rider, Mizanur said. The auto-rickshaws had to be pushed on the flooded road to reach Charpol.

From Charpol, the group rented a sand carrier trawler and started for Sunamganj. But that was not a smooth journey as well. Thundershowers continued as they started, said Shoaib Ahmed. “Many of us didn’t know how to swim and we sat quietly and helplessly on the trawler. But the trawler driver lost his way. It took three hours to cross a route of an hour and we reached Sunamganj city at around 10pm.”

The students anticipated the end of their suffering when they reached Sunamganj city, but found it heavily flooded. The ground floors of every building were inundated.

A group of Dhaka University students, who were stranded on the banks of the Surma River while visiting a Haor or wetland amid the floods in Sunamganj, were rescued with the help of the army on Sunday, Jun 19, 2022. Photo: ISPR

“There was no vehicle available for returning to Dhaka. We had to wade through chest-deep water and take shelter on the first floor of a restaurant called Panshi near the old bus stand in the city. Another 200 people had already taken refuge there,” Shoaib said.

The group then contacted their teachers and classmates at Dhaka University and urged them to rescue them. They also shared the dearth of food, drinking water and electricity they had been going through.

DU Proctor AKM Golam Rabbani and Professor Abul Mansur Ahammad, chairman of the mass communication and journalism department, asked the local administration and RAB to provide them with food and rescue them.

A team of RAB led by Sunamganj Deputy Commissioner Jahangir Hossain rescued them and took them to the Police Lines on Friday. They started for Sylhet on a launch called Kapotakkha Anirban Tourism Boat on Saturday, accompanied by another 100 passengers.

Just when the students thought their predicament was over, fate had something else stored for them. They were yet to encounter the most horrific experience.

One of the two engines of the launch broke down due to strong currents and it was sailing with only one. Around 8pm, the launch hit a submerged shoal, tilted and got stuck.

No visibility, rains and strong currents left the driver with no control over the small launch, Shoaib said. “I fell off the seat as the launch hit the shoal. It was pandemonium with everyone crying and praying. We lost hope of survival.”

They contacted the army and the coastguards but still were marooned as the rescue team could not reach them due to rains and strong currents.

“We spent that time of horror together and that’s why we could survive. Some of us broke down while some tried to give courage to everyone. Some cracked jokes only to lift the mood. We're trying to get help,” said Farah Jahan Suchi, one of the students.

She said at around 1:30am, the front side of the launch was slowly submerging in water. Some passengers got down and tried to remove the launch from where it was stuck.

A group of Dhaka University students, who were stranded on the banks of the Surma River while visiting a Haor or wetland amid the floods in Sunamganj, were rescued with the help of the army on Sunday, Jun 19, 2022. Photo: ISPR

“It was the most dangerous time as the launch could drift away if the only remaining engine went out of order. At one point the driver could restart the launch and we started towards Chhatak.”

After reaching Chhatak at 4:30am on Sunday, the launch moored at a pier. A team of army personnel rescued them and took them to a temporary camp in Gobindganj in five speedboats. Then the students were taken to Sylhet airport.

Army Chief SM Shafiuddin Ahmed met the students at the airport. Later, an army bus dropped the students at the Dhaka University campus, said Mizanur. He expressed his gratitude to everyone for rescuing the students.

“We always learned that water is life. This time we learned that it can equate to death as well. Only two or three among us knew how to swim. Even if someone had the skill, it wasn’t enough to survive the strong currents in the river. The rest of our lives after Jun 18 is like a bonus for us,” said another student, Lam-Ya Akter Prapti.

“It was a near-death experience and all I was remembering at that time were the faces of my parents. As if I could hear them crying for me. They stopped eating or sleeping and only prayed for my safe return.”

A group of Dhaka University students, who were stranded on the banks of the Surma River while visiting a Haor or wetland amid the floods in Sunamganj, were rescued with the help of the army on Sunday, Jun 19, 2022. Photo: ISPR

Maria Hasiba said the tour was a turning point in her life as she had a brush with death, and saw friendship, love and patience in people. “We stayed together and supported each other in the time of need. Staying alive was uncertain for us but we kept calm. I don’t know how we got that mental stability,” Maria said.

Witnessing the suffering of people, the students took the initiative to help the people affected by the severe floods in Sunamganj. They are collecting aid from people at the campus with the assistance of their teachers.

“We have seen how the Sunamganj people were struggling to survive. It felt like a famine going on there. When we were rescued and travelling by boats in Chhatak, people were screaming for food thinking we got relief aid for them,” said Shoaib.

Moved by the laments of the flood-affected people, the group of students now want to help others in their “bonus lifetime”.