Chattogram is facing a catastrophe following 43 years of record rainfall. Most areas of the port city became submerged as nearly 600 millimetres of rain fell within 48 hours.
The deluge resulted in one death due to a wall collapse on Tuesday, while the Cox’s Bazar-bound Tourist Express was stranded in Chattogram as water rose onto the railway tracks.
Three flights were unable to land at Shah Amanat International Airport. Nationwide gas pressure issues have also emerged due to disrupted LNG supply from the floating terminal at Maheshkhali caused by foul weather.
According to Meteorological Department statistics, Chattogram residents have not seen such heavy rainfall since 1983. The rain is expected to continue until Friday, meaning public suffering may persist for several more days.
Alongside the port city, life in the two hilly districts is also being disrupted by the disastrous weather, with reports of waterlogging in low-lying areas and stranded tourists.
Suman Saha, a meteorologist at the Patenga Met Office, told TIMES of Bangladesh that 412.3 mm of rain was recorded in the 24 hours leading up to 3pm on Tuesday, with the 48-hour total reaching nearly 600 mm.
Waterlogging leave life stagnant
The perennial problem of waterlogging in Chattogram has reached a massive scale this time. Roadways in Agrabad, Chawkbazar, Katalganj, Kapasgola, Chandgaon, and Bakalia went underwater on Tuesday morning.
Normal life came to a standstill as water entered businesses and homes in low-lying areas.
Classes and examinations at various educational institutions were suspended due to the flooding. A section of the road adjacent to Patenga sea beach collapsed, halting traffic on one side.
Lieutenant Colonel Md Mohsin, project director of the Army’s 34 Engineer Construction Brigade – which is in charge of the waterlogging mitigation project – explained that their drainage model is designed to handle a maximum of 550 mm of rainfall.
However, as the rainfall exceeded this limit and a large volume of sand from the hills filled the drains, the water took longer to recede.
Death in wall collapse
In the afternoon, a 43-year-old boundary wall collapsed in the Rahman Nagar residential area of Panchlaish, killing a fish trader named Shafiqul Islam. His four-year-old son Sohan, two-year-old daughter Saifa, and mother-in-law Manjila Begum were seriously injured in the incident.
The building owner’s family claimed that a hole had been made without their knowledge to drain accumulated water, which may have caused the wall to collapse under the pressure of the current.
The Meteorological Department warns of potential landslides in hilly areas if the rain continues. The district administration has directed eight educational institutions to be kept ready as emergency shelters.
Public announcements are being made via loudspeakers (miking) to urge those living in risky areas to move to safe locations.
Foul weather triggers LNG crisis
The delivery of scheduled LNG cargoes to the floating terminal at Maheshkhali could not begin due to the weather, leading to a daily reduction of approximately 300 million cubic feet in gas supply to the national grid.
Petrobangla announced in a press release that consumers of all categories across the country would face low gas pressure as a result.
Imported LNG is regasified at this terminal and supplied to the national grid, from where it is distributed to power plants, fertiliser factories, industries, captive power, CNG stations, and residential customers.
A reduction in supply from the floating terminal impacts not only domestic cooking gas but also industrial production and electricity generation. While the two floating terminals at Maheshkhali have a daily capacity of 1,100 MMcf/d, they usually provide between 800 and 1,000 MMcf/d.
Due to the disaster, supply has dropped to near 500 MMcf/d.
Impact on the hills
In the hilly regions, Bandarban recorded nearly 400 mm of rain over four days, leaving the Sangu, Matamuhuri, and Bakkhali rivers flowing near their danger levels. Risks of landslides have intensified.
Heavy rain and upstream runoff have flooded low-lying areas of Lama, Naikhongchhari, and Thanchi upazilas. A five-year-old child, Alia Sultana, died after being washed away by the strong current of the Rangajhiri canal in Baishari Union, Naikhongchhari.
To mitigate risks, the district administration issued a public notice banning travel to all tourism centres in the district until 10 July.
Over 150 tourists, including guides, are currently stranded at various spots, though the district administration stated they are safe. A total of 220 shelters have been prepared across the district.
In Rangamati, the district administration has also temporarily closed the Sajek Valley tourism centre due to potential weather risks. Travel to all tourism centres, waterfalls, hill trails, remote areas, and risky spots has been banned for tourists and tour operators.
Landslides have occurred in several locations, claiming the life of an individual named Laxmi Bilas Chakma. The Rangamati district administration has arranged 11 shelters across nine wards of the municipality.
In Khagrachhari, low-lying areas of Muslim Para, North Ganjpara, part of Mehedi Bag, Maishchhari market in Mahalchhari, and the Dighinala and Longadu roads are submerged, disrupting traffic.
Shelters have been opened for waterlogged families, and authorities are working to evacuate those living at risk of landslides. In Cox’s Bazar, another landslide in the Dariya Nagar area of the suburbs killed a woman named Nasima Akter.
Tahmina Akter, the Cox’s Bazar Sadar upazila nirbahi officer (UNO), stated that residents in risky hilly areas had been warned to move to safety earlier, but many ignored the instructions.
The previous day, eight people died in landslides at the Rohingya camps in Ukhiya, with three more deaths reported in Cox’s Bazar town and Pekua upazila.
