Residents stuck as torrential rain hits evening Dhaka

The Met Office says active monsoon winds are causing deep clouds and potential stormy winds over coastal areas

A light drizzle that began around 6:45pm suddenly intensified, forcing four drenched teenage girls to seek refuge at a metro station in Dhaka’s Bijoy Sarani.

Although they escaped the cold rain, the concern of how to get home loomed large. Even after half an hour, with no sign of the rain stopping, they sat waiting on the station stairs, growing anxious about their journey home.

The Bangladesh Meteorological Department had forecast heavy rain in three divisions, including Dhaka, due to active monsoon winds.

Following that Wednesday noon warning, Dhaka witnessed rainfall in the evening.

While the four teenagers got drenched, hundreds of commuters remained stuck at the station after arriving dry but unable to continue their journey home.

As the day ended, the number of homeward-bound commuters swelled with each arriving train, especially those travelling from the Motijheel area.

Many commuters who use this station daily to return to areas like Asad Gate, Nakhalpara, Mohakhali, and Tejgaon were among those stranded.

One of the teenagers, Fatema Tuz Zohra, told bdnews24.com: “We are four sisters. As cousins, we always go everywhere together. We came here this afternoon to visit the Novo Theatre and Zia Uddan. It was evening by the time we finished. Now it’s time to go home, and the rain started. We don’t mind getting wet, but I’m just worried about how much scolding we’ll get when we reach home.”

Left with no option but to wait for the rain to ease before taking a rickshaw to Nakhalpara, the four girls joined many others in the same situation.

Raziur Rahman, another commuter waiting at the station, told bdnews24.com: “I’ve been waiting since 6:30pm after finishing work at Motijheel. I missed the first train due to the rush and caught the next one. Now I’ve arrived here and see it’s raining heavily. Getting wet isn’t ideal, so I’m just sitting and watching the rain.”

The drizzle, which began at 6:45pm, steadily increased in intensity over time. By 8:00pm, the rain became even heavier, clearly visible under the streetlights.

In a warning issued earlier in the day, the Met Office said active monsoon winds had created deep clouds over the northern Bay of Bengal and coastal areas. As a result, stormy winds might blow over coastal regions, the northern Bay of Bengal, and maritime ports.

The ports of Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, Mongla, and Payra have been advised to hoist cautionary signal number three.

Along with this, fishing boats and trawlers in the northern Bay of Bengal have been asked to remain close to shore until further notice.

In the 24 hours following 9am on Wednesday, temporary gusty winds, along with light to moderate rainfall, were forecast for most areas of Dhaka, Khulna, Barishal, Chattogram, and Sylhet divisions, and many places in Rangpur, Rajshahi, and Mymensingh divisions.

Heavy to very heavy rainfall was also predicted in parts of Chattogram, Barishal, and Sylhet divisions.

As of 6am on Wednesday, Chattogram’s Sandwip recorded the highest rainfall in the country at 23 millimetres in the previous 24 hours.

Usually, 1-10 mm of rain over 24 hours is considered light, 11-22 mm is considered moderate, 23-43 mm is considered moderately heavy, 44-88 is considered heavy, and anything above 88 mm is considered very heavy.