KURIGRAM: The death toll from flash floods triggered by heavy monsoon rains in Bangladesh this week has risen to eight, leaving over two million affected after rains caused major rivers to burst their banks, officials confirmed Saturday.
The flood-related fatalities include two teenage boys who drowned after their boat capsized in floodwaters in Shahjadur, a rural town in northern Bangladesh. Sabuj Rana, the local police chief, reported that the boys were unable to swim to safety when their boat overturned, leaving seven others to fend for themselves.
In Kurigram district, one of the worst-hit areas, three fatalities occurred due to electrocution incidents when boats came into contact with live electrical wires submerged in floodwaters, according to Bishwadeb Roy, a police official in the district.
“The flood situation is dire,” Abdul Hye, a local disaster and relief official, told AFP. “Eight out of nine rural towns in Kurigram are marooned by floodwater, with over 80 percent of homes inundated.”
Kamrul Hasan, the secretary of Bangladesh’s disaster management ministry, confirmed that the floods have affected 17 out of the country’s 64 districts, primarily in the northern regions. Hasan warned that the situation may worsen as the Brahmaputra River, a major waterway flowing through Bangladesh, continues to rise above dangerous levels in some areas.
“We live with floods here. But this year the water was very high,” said Abdul Gafur, a local councillor in Kurigram. “Floodwater has inundated homes, leading to a severe drinking water crisis. Relief efforts are underway, focusing on providing essential supplies like rice and edible oil to affected communities.”
The Bangladesh government has mobilized resources to assist those displaced by the floods, opening hundreds of shelters and distributing food and relief supplies to the hardest-hit districts. The annual monsoon season, which brings vital rainfall to South Asia, also brings widespread disruption and peril due to flooding and landslides.
