Sylhet
ADB to help govt recover losses from flood
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has assured the government to provide all sorts of cooperation to help recoup the losses from the recent flood across Bangladesh including Sylhet.
Edimon Ginting, country director of ADB, made the assurance during a courtesy call on LGRD Minister Md Tajul Islam at the latter’s office on Thursday.
In the meeting, the minister briefed the country director about the damages, including roads, bridges, culverts, water, and sanitation system due to the flood and various measures taken by the government to recover the losses as early as possible.
He said ADB always stands beside Bangladesh with help to build rural infrastructures, and in many sectors including water resources, agriculture, education, transport, and fuel.
The minister thanked the regional money lender for its positive role to achieve the sustainable development goals of the country.
In response, Edimon Ginting has expressed his keen interest to work with the government on a rehabilitation programme in flood-affected areas.
Mentioning that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been working relentlessly to build a developed country within 2041, Ginting said Bangladesh has become a role model of development in the world.
Floods damage 1600 km roads, bridges in Sylhet: Govt estimate
Two rounds of flood have caused extensive damages to roads and bridges in Sylhet division, disrupting road communication and causing sufferings to people.
Some areas in Sylhet division are still under floodwater. Vehicles are plying on these roads with risk as flooding has created potholes on almost every road, said locals.
According to a joint estimate by the Roads and Highways department (RHD), the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) and Sylhet City Corporation (SCC), a total of 1,600 kilometers of roads and have been damaged in this year’s flooding in the Sylhet region, which is worth Tk 2,100 crore.
The two rounds of flooding battered the region in May and June. Almost all the roads of Sylhet were submerged which severed Sylhet’s road link with the rest of the country. Although floodwater has receded from most of the areas, road communication is yet to return to its usual state.
According to the LGED, SCC and RHD, around 1600 km roads and 2.5km bridges in the four districts of Sylhet division need repairing, which will cost approximately Tk 2,100 crore.
Read: Flood situation worsens in Sylhet; low-lying areas in city inundated
According to the SCC, 186.53km roads in Sylhet metropolitan area have been damaged. Besides, 96.72km drains, one km retaining wall, 60km footpaths and 82km water lines have been affected by floodwater.
“Tk 328 crore is needed to repair these. We’ve already requested the ministry concerned for allocation,” said Nur Azizur Rahman, Chief Engineer of SCC.
Mostafizur Rahman, Executive Engineer of Sylhet RHD, said roads under RHD worth Tk 550 crore were destroyed by the flood.
“We’ve conducted departmental repairing works as temporary solution. Permanent repairs won’t be possible if we don’t get the required funds,” Mostafizur said.
Flooding has ruined rural roads built by LGED the most. The length of these roads is at least 1,200km and the amount of losses is around Tk 1,000 crore.
Read: Floods in the northeast throw over 4.55 lakh students in Sylhet div into uncertainty
“We’ve been able to mitigate the losses to some extent by using sandbags during the flooding. We’ve kept the roads useable through using bricks and sandbags in places where holes have emerged,” said Enamul Kabir, Executive Engineer of Sylhet LGED.
Parts of Sylhet city go under knee-deep water after 1 hr rains
The residents of Sylhet city woke up to waterlogged streets on Sunday morning after one hour monsoon showers.
On Saturday, a heavy bout of rainfall brought much-awaited relief in the district after a week of a heatwave that scorched parts of the country. The rains started around 11 pm and it continued for one hour.
Rain brings respite from unbearable heat to Sylhet
Finally it has started to rain in Sylhet, bringing down the district’s temperature from its record-breaking ceiling and lessening the woes of the people who were suffering from extreme heat just a while back.
The shower in Sylhet comes as no surprise as the weather department had predicted such will happen across the country in the next 24 hours.
Light to moderate rain or thundershowers accompanied by temporary gusty wind is likely to occur at a few places over Rangpur, Khulna, Barishal, Chattogram, Mymensingh and Sylhet divisions and at one or two places over Rajshahi and Dhaka divisions, the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) said on Saturday.
Sylhet on Thursday witnessed its hottest day in July in 66 years, at 38.9 degrees Celsius.
After receiving highest rainfall in June in 64 years that triggered massive floods across the district, Sylhet is now reeling under an intense heat wave.
Read: Sylhet sizzles: Thursday hottest July day in 66 years!
“Such a high temperature was last recorded in the district in July 1956. On Wednesday, the temperature was recorded at 37.3 degrees. And it was recorded at 36.3 degrees on Tuesday,” said Sayeed Ahmad Chowdhury, a senior meteorologist with the Sylhet met office.
Meanwhile, the met office said the ongoing heat wave may continue for one or two days more and showers may occur after 72 hours.
Flood in SCC: 65km of roads damaged with losses Tk 200-cr
At least 65km of the road network has been badly damaged due to the recent flooding in Sylhet City Corporation.
According to the officials of the Road and Highways Department, LGED and City Corporation, the roads have been affected most during the flood.
And even after the roads were submerged, traffic movement continued. As a result, the amount of damage has increased, they said.
There are two important roads in the city corporation area. One of them is Sunamganj road starting from Ambarkhana and the other is Subhani Ghat road via Kumarpara.
Both the roads went underwater and were badly damaged during the flood.
Noor Azizur Rahman, a chief engineer of Sylhet City Corporation, said more than a hundred roads in the city area have become unfit to use. Besides, all the roads along the Surma River have been damaged. "The total loss amounts to Tk 200 crore,” said Azizur".
Read: Flood situation worsens in Sylhet; low-lying areas in city inundated
He said that the more damaged roads are being repaired at some places. However, not everything has been done yet.
Advocate Saleh Ahmad Salim, councilor of Ward No. 22 of Sylhet City Corporation, said that there are 108 roads in his ward. All roads have been affected by the recent flooding. He demanded that the damaged road be repaired as soon as possible to ease the suffering of the people.
Meanwhile, the city mayor and chief engineer have talked to the road officials to repair the damaged roads as early as possible.
Flood death toll now 121: DGHS
The death toll from the devastating floods in the country rose to 121 with two more deaths in Sylhet district in 24 hours till Saturday morning.
The latest victims drowned in floodwater, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
Of the total deceased, 94 people drowned in floodwater, 15 were killed by lightning, two died from snake bites, one from diarrhoea, and nine others due to other reasons.
Read: WB approves $500 million credit to bolster flood preparedness in Bangladesh
Of the deceased, 67 people died in Sylhet, 41 in Mymensingh, 12 in Rangpur and one in Dhaka division, the DGHS said.
Of a total of 70 flood-hit upazilas, 33 are in Sylhet division, 16 in Rangpur division, 20 in Mymensingh division and one in Chattogram division.
Sylhet, Sunamganj, Netrokona and Kurigram are the worst-hit districts, with 13, 11, 10 and nine upazilas affected by floods, respectively.
Sylhet sizzles: Thursday hottest July day in 66 years!
Sylhet on Thursday witnessed its hottest day in July in 66 years, at 38.9 degrees Celsius.
After receiving highest rainfall in June in 64 years that triggered massive floods across the district, Sylhet is now reeling under an intense heat wave.
“Such a high temperature was last recorded in the district in July 1956. On Wednesday, the temperature was recorded at 37.3 degrees. And it was recorded at 36.3 degrees on Tuesday,” said Sayeed Ahmad Chowdhury, a senior meteorologist with the Sylhet met office.
On Thursday, the roads of Sylhet city wore a deserted look. A handful of people who had stepped out in the afternoon were equipped with umbrellas and water bottles.
Meanwhile, the met office said the ongoing heatwave may continue for one or two days more and showers may occur after 72 hours.
Also read: Mild heatwave sweeps 27 districts
Meteorologist Tariful Newaz Kabir said, “Little showers may occur at a few places but it won’t be enough to reduce the heat. Rainfall activity may increase after July 17 or 18.”
“Excess humidity is compounding the woes of the residents. This humidity is due to the seasonal trough,” he added.
Also read: Heat wave, flooding leave multiple people dead in China
Dhaka’s rail link with Sylhet restored after 7 hours
Rail communications between Dhaka and Sylhet were restored Tuesday afternoon after 10 hours of suspension following derailment of a bogie of a freight train near Mukundapur railway station in Bijoynagar upazila of Brahmanbaria.
Saiful Islam, station master of Mukundapur railway station, said a bogie of the oil-laden freight train from Akhaura veered off the tracks in a place between Mukundapur and Harashpur of the district around 10:50 am, halting train services on the route.
Read:Derailment halts Dhaka’s rail link with northern districts
Md Monir Uddin, loco Shed in-charge of Akhaura railway junction station, said the rail communications resumed around 6:15 pm when a relief train from Akhaura station removed the bogie from the tracks.
Two trains of ‘Paharika Express’, one Sylhet-bound train and another Chattogram-bound train got stranded at Akhaura Railway Junction Station and Shayestaganj railway station respectively following the derailment, he added.
Flood water rises again in Sylhet
The flood water in Sylhet increased once again on Wednesday due to a heavy downpour since Tuesday night.Many areas of the district went under water as the flood situation slightly worsened.According to the Water Development Board, water in Surma River at Kanaighat point and Sylhet point has increased 6 and 1 centimetres, respectively, in the last 24 hours. At the same time, water in the Kushiara River has increased 2 centimeters at Fenchuganj point.On the other hand, water in the Sari River and Lova River has increased by 10 and 7 centimeter, respectively. However, water in the Dhalai River has slightly receded.AKM Niloy Pasha, deputy assistant of Sylhet Water Development Board, said, the water in the rivers of the district has increased due to excessive rainfall. The situation might continue till Thursday. District administration data said a total of 314 shelters have been opened for the flood-affected people while 22,176 flood victims have taken shelter.
Sylhet records highest rainfall in June in 62 years
Sylhet district recorded the highest rainfall in June in 62 years, said officials of Sylhet Weather Observatory Office.
The district recorded 2456.02 mm of rainfall last month, the highest rainfall recorded after 1956, it said.
The average rainfall in June in the district is 818.4 mm but it experienced 2456.02 mm rains which is 77.78% higher than average, it said.
Syed Ahmed Chowdhury, Senior Meteorologist of Sylhet Weather Observatory office, said “In June Sylhet district experienced an unnatural rainfall. Showers are seen 22 days of the month on average but it rained 28 days this June. 303.6 mm of rainfall was recorded in a single day on June 18.”
Read: Sylhet flood situation improves as rivers recede
In 2004, 1394 mm of rainfall was recorded in June in Sylhet, he said.
Flood situation in Sylhet
The overall flood situation in Sylhet continued to improve with the fall of waters in all major rivers.
At 6pm on Monday, the Surma was flowing 34 cm above the danger level after its water level dropped 8 cm in 24 hours, according to the district Water Development Board (WDB).
Though the water level of the Kushiara river increased a little bit at Amalshid point.
However, flood survivors across the northeastern district continue to suffer from the deluge. While many have taken refuge in makeshift shelters, others are staying in tents on the highway and roads.
According to the local administration, 29,99,433 members of 4,84,383 families have been affected by the flood while 40,000 dwelling houses were destroyed.
SM Shahidul Islam, the river water in most of the point has started to recede but in a slow process.
Read:Flood waters receding again in Sylhet but food, water crises persist
Government allocation
The government has provided Tk 2.57 crore till July 3 for the flood-hit people in Sylhet. Besides, 1,612 metric tonnes of rice were also disbursed among the flood- affected people, said Sylhet Deputy Commissioner Md Mujibur Rahman.
Besides, the government also provided Tk 10 lakh for baby food and fodder each and 20,218 packets of dry food.
A letter was also sent to the authorities concerned seeking Tk 50 lakh cash, Tk 20 lakh for baby food and animal feed to tackle the post-flood situation, said Mujibur.