More than 500,000 people marooned as floodwater inundates Sylhet

Sylhet saw 61 millimetres of rainfall in the last 24 hours

The flood situation in Sylhet, triggered by incessant rain and the onrush of water from upstream, has improved slightly but 533,000 people in seven Upazilas are still marooned by floodwater, according to the district administration.

"We are keeping an eye on the overall situation, but it has improved. Flood victims are being rescued and taken to the shelters. We're also distributing relief among them," said Sylhet Deputy Commissioner Sheikh Russell Hasan.

Water in the rivers in Gowainghat and Jaintapur Upazilas flowed below the danger level on Friday, said Deepak Ranjan Das, executive engineer at the Water Development Board in Sylhet. However, water in the Kushiyara River was flowing 1 metre above the danger level at Zakiganj and Surma River in Kanaighat.

The flood situation will deteriorate unless there was heavy rainfall or flash flood in the hills, the engineer said, hoping things would return to normal in a few days.

It has rained 194mm in the last 24 hours in Cherapunji, in India's Meghalaya, upstream from Sylhet.

Sylhet Deputy Civil Surgeon Dr Jonmejoy Dutta said 131 medical teams were prepared to provide medical treatment to flood victims.

It will take time to figure out the financial damage caused by the flood, said Mohammed Khair Uddin Molla, deputy director of the Department of Agricultural Extension, Sylhet.

According to the information provided by the agricultural extension department, a total of 5,601 hectares of Aus paddy, Aus seedbed and vegetable crops have been submerged due to excessive rain and waterlogging in the Gowainghat, Companiganj, Jaintapur, Kanaighat and Zakiganj Upazilas of the district. Among the affected croplands, 1,682 hectares were of Aus paddy, 927 hectares of Aus seedbed and 2,992 hectares of vegetable crops.

It rained 61 mm in Sylhet in the past 24 hours, according to Shah Mohammad Sajib Hossain, an assistant meteorologist at the Sylhet Met Office.

When asked about the damage incurred to streets in the districts due to the floods, Local Government Engineering Department’s Executive Engineer KM Faruk Hossain said Upazila-level engineers have been asked to collect data about the damage but it would be determined once the flood water recedes. The authorities need a few more days to determine the full extent, he said.

The floodwater has decreased slightly but streets are still under water.

The water in the market has gone down, said Shohag Chakrabarty, a resident of Gowainghat Sadar Upazila and local trader, on Friday afternoon.

Jaintapur resident and local media worker Md Rezwan Karim Sabbir said he was cleaning his house after the flood water receded on Friday afternoon.

The low-lying areas of the Upazila are still inundated but the water level is falling. However, the roads are still submerged, he said.

Gowainghat Upazila Executive Officer (UNO) Md Towhidul Islam said the flood situation in Upazila has improved. The water level of three rivers in the Upazila has fallen below the danger level.

The local administration has visited roads, bridges and culverts affected by the sudden flood, he said. The LGED Upazila-level engineer has been instructed to repair the affected roads and bridges to make them suitable for people.

Around 547 shelters had been opened in the district’s 13 Upazilas in preparation for the flood. As many as 4,802 flood victims from seven Upazilas took shelter in the centres as of Thursday midnight. A total of 533,202 have been marooned by floodwater in these seven districts, according to a statement signed by the district’s Deputy Commissioner Hasan.

Around 245,750 people have been affected by the flood in the district’s Gowainghat Upazila, the most in a single area. All 13 unions of the Upazila have been affected by the flooding and 2,356 people have taken shelter in 56 shelters.

Among six unions in Companiganj Upazila, three unions have been affected by flooding, leaving 93,000 people marooned. As many as 135 people have taken refuge in the Upazila’s 35 shelters.

The district administration said 1,000 sacks of dry food and 75 tonnes of rice have already been distributed in the Gowainghat, Companiganj, Jaintapur, Kanaighat and Zakiganj Upazilas. The government has also allocated aid worth Tk 250,000 for the affected areas.