The Sangu river in Bandarban is flowing above the danger level after several days of heavy rain and hill torrents. The rising river has flooded low-lying parts of the district, with water entering homes, roads and farmland and adding to people's hardship.

Local sources said water had entered several riverside areas of the municipality, including Army Para, Member Para, Islampur Sher-e-Bangla, the Brigade area, the mango orchard at Balaghata, Kyachinghata and Hafezghona. Many families are marooned, and rural roads have gone under in places, disrupting movement.

With the rain continuing, the risk of landslides has also increased. The administration has warned people living at the foot of hills and in other risky areas and urged them to move to safe shelter.

So far 140 families whose homes were flooded have taken refuge in shelters, and the number is growing. At least several thousand people across the district are marooned.

Administration sources said the situation was being monitored, and upazila administrations, the fire service and other departments had been kept ready for possible floods and landslides. Residents of risky areas are being warned to take shelter. The district has opened 220 shelters, 45 of them in Bandarban Sadar.

Milton Dastidar, project implementation officer (PIO) of Bandarban Sadar upazila, said about 700 people from 190 families had taken shelter in the upazila's 45 centres by 11am, and the government was giving all-round support.

Apu Deb, executive engineer of the Bandarban Water Development Board, said the Sangu was rising quickly because of hill torrents from upstream and continuous rain. At 9am it crossed the danger level and was flowing at a reading of 15.75. The situation could worsen if the rain continued, he said.

Sanatan Kumar Mondal, officer in charge at the Meteorological Department, said 309 millimetres of rain fell in the district from 9am the previous day to 9am that day, and the rain could continue for several more days.

Bandarban Deputy Commissioner Saniul Ferdous said full preparations had been made to deal with the disaster. Upazila nirbahi officers (UNOs), executive magistrates and elected representatives had been instructed to move residents at risk of landslides in the district's seven upazilas to safe places.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.