|
|
|
|
| Floods 2004 |
|
|
|
Heavy cloudbursts and a strong pull of the full moon in the coming days threaten to worsen the deluge in the central region, water and weather experts warned yesterday, while northern districts saw a significant recession of floodwaters. Director of the Meteorological Department Akram Hossain forecasts that heavy rains will lash Bangladesh for the next five days from tomorrow. Driving rains twinned with the rush of water from the upstream will worsen the floods, he said. "We are aware of this forecast. Heavy rains may come in the Ganges and Brahmaputra basins. It will take seven to eight days for the water of these basins to reach the central region," Executive Engineer Selim Bhuiyan of the Water Development Board's Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre told The Daily Star. "If the floodwaters in the central region do not recede significantly by the time, deterioration of the flood situation is highly likely," he said. According to Bangla calendar Loknath Panjika, high tide triggered by the full moon will prevail from Friday night to Saturday morning. But Akram Hossain says the full moon will appear on the midnight of August 2 according to the information with the Meteorological Department.
The only good news is that the water level in the Meghna river in Chandpur has marked a decrease of 10 cm on Tuesday, although it is flowing 82 cm above the danger level. Bhuiyan noted there is a possibility that the water level in the Meghna river will fall further in 48 hours, which will improve the flood situation in the central part of the country. "Yet the floodwaters in the capital may not retreat soon unless the water levels in the Buriganga, Shitalakkha, Dhaleswari and other rivers around Dhaka go far below the danger marks," he said. Water experts at a seminar warned that this year's floods may prolong, if the gushing waters from upstream continue to roll and the sea remains rough at the same time, official news agency BSS reports. The total recession of floodwaters will take at least two to three weeks if the sea remains calm and the water run-off from upstream slows down, the experts told the seminar organised by the Centre for Water, Environment and Energy at the National Press Club. The situation in the north and northeast improved further with the significant recession of water from farmlands, but farmers face a severe seed crisis. DHAKA DELUGE The deluge in Dhaka and environs will deteriorate, private news agency UNB said quoting the latest warning backed up with harsh signs that all nine rivers around the capital swelled further and would rise more in coming days. Yesterday's rains twinned with a relentless rush of water from upstream sent the rivers surging. The Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre in its bulletin said water levels rose further in the Shitalakkha, Balu, Bangshi, Dhaleswari, Kaliganga, Turag, Buriganga and Tongi Khal, all flowing high above danger marks for over a week now. City-planner Professor Nazrul Islam told UNB that narrowing Gulshan-Baridhara Lake was a major cause of Gulshan and adjoining areas going under water. "Floods did not affect the Dhanmondi area as Dhanmondi Lake is still as it is and also for the western embankment," he said. Holding their belongings over their heads, residents waded through the waist-deep floodwaters, which mixed with sewage and turned blackish and foul-smelling. Millions of people in Bangladesh are without adequate food or clean water, a senior government official told AFP, as the death toll in floods that have submerged two-thirds of the country rose to 400. The government was distributing relief and assessing the situation to decide whether to issue an international appeal for assistance, said Tajul Islam, press secretary to Prime Minister Khaleda Zia. "Millions are affected and are in need of food and clean water," he said. "The government is assessing how much assistance will be needed to tackle both the current situation and the situation after the flood when massive rehabilitation will be undertaken." The flood situation in Habiganj showed a little improvement as the floodwaters started receding from swamped areas with a fall in the Khowai river, but most houses, businesses and government offices remained 2 to 3 feet under water and road links between the district headquarters and seven upazilas remained cut off. Our correspondent from Comilla said: The floods swamped fresh areas in Comilla where nine people died and 12 lakh people have been marooned since the deluge hit the district on July 10. Heavy rains and overspills from the Meghna river hit nine of 14 upzilas in the district. The Flood Forecasting Centre said the flood situation in Sylhet, Sunamganj, Moulvibazar and Netrokona continued improving, while the situation in Tangail, Dhaka, Manikganj, Munshiganj, Narayanganj and Chandpur is likely to remain unchanged. The floods in seven upazilas, including Dhunat, in Bogra remained unchanged. Officials at the District Relief and Rehabilitation Office said the floods affected 6,29,023 people there. (AFP and BSS contributed to this report)
|
|
|
|
|
| ©
Copyright and Fair Use . SDNP Bangladesh holds
the © copyright to its publications and web pages but |
