Flood takes a serious turn in Sylhet due to onrush of upstream water from India and incessant rain. Some 5,33,202 people have become marooned in Jaintapur, Gowainghat, Kanaighat, Companyganj, Bianibazar, Zakiganj and Golapganj upazilas.
According to the Sylhet office of Water Development Board (WDB), water was flowing above the danger levels at three points in the rivers Surma and Kushiara till 9:00am on Friday. Besides, the water levels in other rivers are both rising and falling.
WDB Sylhet office's executive engineer Dipak Ranjan Das said at about 11:15am that water started receding as rain didn't fall today though sky looks cloudy. Situation would improve if rain doesn't fall and onrush of upstream water is slowed down.
Talking to local public representatives and inhabitants, it was learnt that most of the villages of Gowainghat, Companyganj, Jaintapur, Kanaighat and Zakiganj upazilas in the district have been flooded by flash floods. Minimum 700 villages of these five upazilas have already been flooded.
Besides, some villages of Bianibazar and Golapganj upazilas have been flooded. Three roads connecting the district sadar headquarters with Gowainghat upazila sadar have been inundated. As a result, road communication to the upazila has completely detached.
According to the district administration, 42 unions of 7 upazilas in Sylhet district were flooded till Thursday midnight. As a result, 5,33,202 inhabitants have become marooned. In such a situation, 547 shelter centres have been opened in 13 upazilas of the district where a total of 4,802 people have taken shelter.
Sylhet Deputy Commissioner and District Magistrate Sheikh Russel Hasan said efforts are going on to shift the marooned families to the shelter centres. Dry food, cooked food and pure drinking water being supplied to the affected people publicly and privately. Besides, union-based medical teams have been formed to provide healthcare facilities to the flood affected people.
Meanwhile, waterlogging was created at Taltala, Mendibagh and Machimpur areas in Sylhet city on Thursday night after entering of water through the drains from the river Surma which is flowing along the city. The same waterlogging situation was prevailing in Sylhet city on Friday morning.
On the other hand, BNP has demanded of the government to rescue the people marooned by sudden flash flood in Sylhet. The BNP leaders called upon the local administration to rescue the affected people while distributing cooked food and cash among the flood affected people in Jaintapur upazila on Thursday evening. At that time, the BNP leaders also alleged that flood has happened due to lack of dredging of rivers and canals.
At the initiatives of district BNP, cooked food and cash were distributed at different shelter centres and flood affected marooned people at different places in Jaintapur upazila. The BNP leaders handed over food and money to some 500 flood affected people. At that time, Sylhet district BNP president Abdul Qaiyyum Chowdhury alleged that the government was not taking any step despite numerous inhabitants in the district have become marooned. The government did not pay any heed to the demand of BNP to dredge all the rivers including the Surma and Kushiara during the devastating flood of 2022.
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