Flooding in Bangladesh

Background

Floods are common in Bangladesh as it is the lowest riparian nation (located near rivers or other water bodies) in the Ganga-Brahmaputra-Meghna [GBM] basin. In June 2022, Bangladesh witnessed some of the worst flooding in 122 years in the Sylhet region, hitting at a time when the country was still recovering from floods in late May, caused by the early arrival of the Southasian monsoons.

Bangladesh is located in Southern Asia in between Burma and India, bordering the Bay of Bengal. With a population of over 41.7 million people, Bangladesh is a populous country, well known for experiencing annual floods that have impacted on the country in various ways. Home to the world's 3 most powerful rivers, Bangladesh has an increased flooding propensity since the late 1990s. As a result, the country has been coping with various flood hazards, resulting in an economical crisis.

Economical Factors

Despite having an annual economic growth of 5.8%, Bangladesh is still a Less Economically Developed Country (LEDC). The country is poor, overpopulated and inefficiently governed. The population below the poverty line in 2010 is about 31.5% of the whole population. The primary, secondary and tertiary industries division in 2008 are 45%, 30% and 25% respectively. 

Geographical Factors

Bangladesh features a flat, low-lying terrain, subject to annual flooding. Its hilly terrain constitutes one tenth of the nation's land area. Much of the fertile soil is deposited by floodwater. 

The total area of Bangladesh is 144,000 sq km, with much of it arable and forest or woodland (67-83%) . Permanent crops take up 2% of the total area and meadows and pastures 4%. Bangladesh is a land of rivers the criss crosses throughout the mostly flat territories of the country. Most homes built in the delta must be constructed on earthened platforms or embankments high enough to remain above the level of the highest floods. There are six seasons in Bangladesh, all of which have their own names in Bangladesh culture, they are: Grismo (summer), Barsha (rainy), Sharat (autumn), Hemanto (cool), Sheet (winter), Bashonto (spring). Bangladesh has a tropical monsoon type climate, hot rainy summers and dry winters. It has one of the wettest climates in the world with most places receiving 1525 mm of rain a year.

Bangladesh has a generally tropical monsoon climate. It has a mild winter from October to March, humid summer from March to June and humid, warm and rainy monsoon from June to October. Being located in South East Asia, 80% of Bangladesh is a flood plain, with 70% of the country being at least 1 m below sea level. Home to the world's 2 largest rivers, a vivid range of minerals flow down to the country from the Himalayas, depositing silt and sediment in the bank.

As a result of the above geographical factors, flooding in Bangladesh has become a frequent occurrence. The image below depicts the extent of damage floods can cause in Bangladesh:

Devestating Floods in Dhaka: May 17 - June 28, 2022

Record-breaking floods in Bangladesh have wreaked havoc as an estimated 7.2 million people have been affected and are in desperate need of shelter and emergency relief items in the north-eastern region of the country.

From early in the month of June, torrential rain and upstream water have completely submerged around 94 per cent of the town of Sunamganj and 84 per cent of Sylhet districts, in northeastern Bangladesh, bordering the Meghalaya state of India.

Parts of Meghalaya have experienced the highest amount of rainfall in decades, which has led to overflowing of large river systems running between India and Bangladesh and completely swallowing surrounding areas.

Fatalities

The toll from Bangladesh's unprecedented floods has risen to more than 100, the authorities said.

According to a daily flood report of the Health Emergency Operation Center and Control Room on Sunday, the floods have killed 102 people in 27 of the 64 flood-affected districts between May 17 and June 28.

Most victims died from drowning, snake bites and lightning in the flood-hit areas, showed the report.

At least 7 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours as of Sunday morning, Xinhua news agency reported.

Situation in Numbers

• 7.2 million people were affected by flash floods,
• 3.5 million children were affected by flash floods,
• 52 deaths, including 9 children,
• 9 districts affected - Sylhet, Sunamganj, Moulivazar, Habiganj, Kishorganj, Netrakona, Brahman Baria, Mymensingh and Sherpur, and
• 472,856 people were evacuated to 1.605 safety centers.

Highlights of Impact and Loss

• Around 2 lakh families in Sylhet and Sunamganj have been without power since 17 May 2022 due to the submergence of Power Stations.
• More than 873 educational institutions, mostly government primary schools, have been closed due to severe flooding in the two districts, causing student learning loss.
• In Sylhet district 80% area went under water while near to 100% area went under water in Sunamgonj district, which has never been experienced in that area.
• Bangladesh Government has deployed Army for conducting search and rescue operation, Bangladesh Navy deployed 27 rescue boat for supporting search & rescue of the stranded population.
• Runway of Sylhet airport gone under water there Civil Aviation Authority suspended flight operation and reschedule international flight to 23 June 2022.
• Kumergaon power station of Sylhet also at risk of inundation, Army currently been deployed to protect power station from entering flood water.
• Electricity completely cut off in Sunamgonj district last 24 hours and limited power supply in Sylhet City Corporation areas, together with limited internet connectivity people are running out mobile charge that also made difficulties to communicate with the humanitarian agencies on the ground.
• Many market and local shops went under water which will disrupt market functionality and supply chain of essential commodities in Sylhet & Sunamgonj districts
• Sunamganj has been completely disconnected from the rest of the country. Road links to Sylhet also started to collapse after floodwater submerged the roads. Railway operation suspended in Sylhet district.
• The education ministry postponed Secondary School Certificate and equivalent exams across the country that were scheduled to begin on Sunday due to the floods.

Disaster Management

Pre-disaster Actions:

Flood Control Technology

1. Flood Action Plan - Following the consecutive floods during the 1990s, Bangladesh began to take part in what is known as a Flood Action Plan (FAP). This plan consists of 26 steps, and aims to minimize the extent of hazards and damage floods will cause to the country, with regards to the resources and funding the country has to deal with such natural disasters. Some main flood control plans Bangladesh has includes boats to rescue people, food storage systems for both the livestock and the people, as well as requesting aids from other countries when a flood arrives.
2. Embankments - One of the main infrastructures Bangladesh has made to reduce the damage flooding may cause, is the $6 billion dollar embankments they have made around their two largest rivers. The embankment, which is 7,555km long, 7m high, is a wall built from cobble, stone and earth, aimed at increasing the discharge of water the river channel can hold, reducing the risks of flooding in the process. The embankments were built since the 1960, and are considered the only long term plan Bangladesh has to reduce the chances of flooding. This allows more homes and cities to be built in the flood plains of Bangladesh, reducing the chances of flooding in the area. However, due to lack of workers and economic funding of resources, the embankments are not quite strong, and along with the great discharge and yearly floods Bangladesh is experiencing, there is a great chance that the embankments will erode and eventually collapse. However, as Bangladesh lacks funding and resources, they are unable to build any more flood control infrastructures to further protect the country from flooding hazards.
3. Flood Shelters - Aside from embankments, Bangladesh also has built 5000 flood shelters around the country to provide citizens with shelter, helping them survive from a flood. Additionally, a Flood Warning Scheme has been generated, involving signals and symbols around the country, to warn people about floods in time for people to make preparations and flee for safety. These schemes also provides farmers with time to protect their crops, get cattle and poultry out of harms way, reducing the harm it has on their agriculture and businesses.

Post-disaster Actions

Humanitarian Coordination

Since the second flood started on 17 June, all UN agencies (UNICEF, UNDP, IOM, FAO, UNFPA and WHO) working in Sylhet division meet every day virtually to discuss the staff wellbeing issues. Subnational level WASH cluster meeting was also organized in Sylhet on 23rd June to discuss “Who is doing What and Where? How they can support WASH response activities?”. Upon request from DPHE, Sylhet, cluster NGOs members agreed to provide support in the distribution of Water Purification Tablets (WPTs) in flood affected areas. On 27th June 2022, the Humanitarian Coordination Task Team (HCTT) Meeting was organized to share the Needs Assessment and rapid gender analysis findings and agree on the Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) on flash flood 2022. Chief of Field Office in Sylhet and team members visited the Divisional Commissioner of Sylhet to brief on UNICEF response activities and supply details transported to Sylhet from Cox’s bazar warehouse.

References

The Editors. 2022. “Managing Floods in Bangladesh - Himal Southasian.” Himal Southasian. August 19, 2022. https://www.himalmag.com/floods-in-bangladesh-2022/.

“HOT Tasking Manager.” 2022. HOT Tasking Manager. Tasking Manager. 2022. https://tasks.hotosm.org/projects/12825.

“Situation Overview.” n.d. Accessed October 1, 2022. https://www.unicef.org/media/123081/file/Bangladesh-Floods-SitRep-27-June-2022.pdf.

“Bangladesh: Flooding and Impacts.” 2013. FloodWorld. 2013. https://water104website.weebly.com/bangladesh-flooding-and-impacts.html.

“Millions in Bangladesh Impacted by One of the Worst Floodings Ever Seen | IFRC.” 2022. Ifrc.org. 2022. https://www.ifrc.org/press-release/millions-bangladesh-impacted-one-worst-floodings-ever-seen.

“Rising Flood Risks in Bangladesh.” 2022. Nasa.gov. NASA Earth Observatory. August 31, 2022. https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/150274/rising-flood-risks-in-bangladesh.

IANS. 2022. “Over 100 Dead as Flood Continues to Wreak Havoc in Bangladesh: Report.” @Bsindia. Business Standard. July 4, 2022. https://www.business-standard.com/article/international/over-100-dead-as-flood-continues-to-wreak-havoc-in-bangladesh-report-122070400036_1.html.

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