Bangladesh, India scramble to help 9 million people hit by ‘worst floods in 122 years’
- Hundreds of thousands of people have been moved to shelters, but at least 9 million residents are still stranded near their inundated homes
- More than 970mm (38 inches) of rain fell on India’s Mawsynram and Cherrapunji on Sunday, worsening the flooding downstream in Bangladesh’s Sylhet division
Monsoon rains in low-lying Bangladesh have triggered catastrophic flooding in the northeastern Sylhet administrative division, leaving one-quarter of its 15 million population stranded amid fast-rising waters and swollen rivers.
02:12
Monsoon rains trigger deadly flooding that has displaced millions in India and Bangladesh
“The flooding is the worst in 122 years in the Sylhet region,” said Atiqul Haque, Director General of Bangladesh’s Department of Disaster Management.
The situation in Sylhet has been worsened by waters cascading down from the surrounding hills of India’s Meghalaya state, including some of world’s wettest areas like Mawsynram and Cherrapunji that each received more than 970mm (38 inches) of rain on Sunday, according to government data.
Around 300,000 people have been moved to shelters in Sylhet but more than 4 million people are stranded near their inundated homes, compounding the challenges for authorities to provide aid, including drinking water and medical supplies.
“The situation is still alarming,” Mohammad Mosharraf Hossain, Sylhet division’s chief administrator, said by phone. “We are intensifying our efforts providing relief materials. At the moment, the main challenge is to reach everyone and ensuring availability of drinking water.”