Sylhet residents reel from power outages, lack of freshwater as floods worsen

The flooding situation in Sylhet has worsened due to persistent rain and mountain runoff. Nearly 500,000 people in five Upazilas and the Sylhet Metropolitan Area are marooned by the waters. Over 250 educational institutes have suspended classes and the power supply is cut off.

Most parts of Companiganj and Gowainghat Upazilas were waterlogged on Friday as a vast region from Jaintiapur and Kanaighat Upazilas also remained submerged under water. Water levels have also been rising in the Sylhet Sadar, Dakshin Surma, Zakiganj and Bishwanath.

The Surma River was flowing above the danger line by about 1.8 centimetres at the Kanaighat point and 25 cm at the Sylhet point at 9 am on Friday, according to Asif Ahmed, the Sylhet zone executive engineer of the Bangladesh Water Development Board.

The current water level in the Sari River is 23 cm above the danger mark, and waters have been flowing higher than the danger mark in the Kushiara and Lobha rivers as well. At Sylhet’s Fenchuganj, the Kushiara was flowing 40 cm above the danger line.

The authorities prepared 443 disaster shelters for the 500,000 marooned people and continued relief efforts in the disaster-hit areas, said Nurul Islam, an official at the District Relief & Rehabilitation Office in Sylhet.

Arun Chandra Paul, the controller of examinations in Sylhet, said floods inundated educational institutions in the district.

The authorities suspended the Secondary School Certificate and other equivalent exams nationwide as the floods worsened in Sylhet, Sunamganj and other districts.

Currently, 230 primary schools have been waterlogged, disrupting children's education in Sylhet, according to Gokul Chandra Debnath, an assistant primary education officer. The situation is similar in 60 secondary schools, colleges and madrasas, said Sylhet District Secondary Education Officer Abu Saeed Md Abdul Wadud.

Floodwaters have also entered the Sylhet Kumargaon power station, which supplies electricity to Sylhet and Sunamganj districts. Power distribution has been suspended in Companiganj, Kanaighat, Jaintiapur and Gowainghat Upazilas as a result.

Suranjit Singh, an engineer at the Kumargaon power station, said: “Water entered the switchyard of the Kumargaon 132/33 KV grid substation. If the rains continue at the current rate, water may soon enter the control room. We have no option but to cut power to all of Sylhet.”

Parts of Sylhet city, including Ghasitula, Shamimabad and Taltala, were waterlogged on Friday, with residents facing hardship as water entered their homes.

Aminul Islam Polash, a resident in Shahajalal, said that most of roads in his area were submerged on Wednesday afternoon and at night the waters reached his home. The water level at his home has been rising ever since. Houses are reeling from power outages and a lack of freshwater.

Rashid Ahmad, a resident of the Sheikhghat area in Sylhet, said, “Floodwaters entered my house for the second time in a month. We are not wealthy. Water damages our belongings in the house and contributes to our sufferings.’’

Ismail Ali, a resident of the Ranikhail area in Sylhet’s Companiganj Upazila, said, “We have seen many floods. Where will I go with my family?”

He said he had suffered severe losses due to the floods.

The Sylhet City Corporation has opened 31 shelters as the flood is getting worse in the city, Mayor Ariful Haque Choudhury said, adding that a lot of the people are reluctant to come to shelters without their furniture and other belongings.

“But we will try our best to move the flood-affected people to safety.”