Flood situation may worsen in northern parts

Although floodwater has started to recede in the northern districts, flood situation may deteriorate there again by the middle of the next week.

"Water level of the rivers in this region may rise as there may be heavy rainfall upstream [from Bangladesh] by the middle of the next week," said Arifuzzaman Bhuiyan, executive engineer of Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC), yesterday.

Flooding in the northern districts may prolong for the next couple of days, he warned.

Currently, floodwater is heading towards the central parts of the country.

Low-lying areas of some districts adjacent to the capital may be inundated. But there is no chance for the water to enter Dhaka city, added the engineer.

District flood situation

In Tangail, water of all rivers is increasing, as heavy flow upstream from the district continues.

The Jamuna river was flowing 88 cm above the danger mark on Thursday. On Friday,  the river rose by another 11 cm, said sources in the Water Development Board (WDB).

Water in the tributaries of the Jamuna, Dhaleswari and Jhenai rivers also increased, flooding fresh areas, especially the chars.

The district's WDB Executive Engineer Sirajul Islam said, based on their forecast, after decreasing for a couple of days, floodwaters may start to rise again from July 21 and may peak between July 25 and July 26.

Sirajul said leakages have appeared at 26 places of the Bhuapur-Tarakandi road, which is also an embankment along the Jamuna, due to pressure from floodwater.

If the embankment collapses, four more upazilas of Tangail will be flooded.

Currently, about 1.3 lakh people in 151 villages in six upazilas of the district have been affected by the flood.

In Munshiganj, the Padma river was flowing 68 cm above the danger mark, yesterday.

Some 13 shelters have been prepared at Srinagar, Louhajang and Tongibari upazila.

However, locals expressed reluctance to go to the shelters before floodwaters reach their homes.

According to sources at the district administration, 65 metric tons of rice, dry food for 700 people and Tk 4 lakh for children's food have been allocated along with livestock feed.

In Brahmanbaria, the Titas river continues to rise due to incessant rain. It was flowing 6 cm above the danger level yesterday.

"Flooding started in the low-lying areas of the upazila but the town protection dam is yet to be submerged," said Ranjan Kumar Das, executive engineer of the local WDB.

In Jamalpur, the overall flood situation turned worse as the Jamuna was flowing 123 cm above the danger mark at Bahadurabad Ghat point in Dewanganj upazila yesterday noon.

Over eight lakh people of 625 villages under seven upazilas and seven municipalities have been affected by the flood.

Many along with their livestock have taken shelter on high grounds of villages and on concrete bridges.

There is a scarcity of drinking water, cooked food and hygiene facilities. People are in dire need of water purifying tablets and dry food.

In Kurigram, yesterday afternoon, the Brahmaputra was flowing 91 cm above the danger mark, Dharla 62 cm and Dudhkumar 81 cm above, said Ariful Islam, executive engineer of local WDB.

Jahela Bewa, a resident of Char Shankar Madhabpur under Rajibpur upazila, said she has been living on an embankment for the last one week as her home was under four to five feet water.

During the June flood, she had to stay on the embankment for 12 days.

In Lalmonirhat, though floodwaters have started to recede from houses, in many areas, roads are still submerged. There is an acute crisis of food and drinking water in the flood-hit areas.

Flood victim Narendra Nath, of Jagatber village in Sadar upazila, said floodwaters have receded from their houses, but they cannot travel for work as roads are still under water. He is now jobless.

Our correspondents from Tangail, Lalmonirhat, Brahmanbaria and Jamalpur contributed to the story.