Joint UN mission visiting flood-hit Sylhet region

A joint mission of the United Nations (UN) headed by UN Resident Coordinator Gwyn Lewis is currently visiting the flood-affected Sylhet and Sunamganj districts, reports UNB.

The mission visited different areas in Birgaon union under Sunamganj’s Shantiganj upazila on Saturday. They will be visiting Sylhet’s Gowainghat upazila on Sunday.

The mission attended a press conference at Sylhet city’s Grand Sylhet hotel on Saturday evening, where Lewis said that around 72 lakh people from nine districts of the country’s northeastern region have been affected by severe flooding this year.

“Sylhet, Sunamganj, Maulvibazar, Habiganj and Netrokona districts are the worst-affected areas. Around five lakh people are currently living in shelter homes, among whom a majority have lost their homes to the flooding. Women and girls in particular are facing huge risks at these shelters,” said Lewis.

Fearing that more flooding can happen in the coming days, the joint mission said that a Needs Assessment Group headed by the Department of Disaster Management (DDM) and CARE has already started to work to mitigate the losses caused by the ongoing flooding.

The group will assess the losses caused by flooding and will identify immediate and short-term needs, said the mission.

UNFPA Representative Kristine Blokus, UNICEF Representative Sheldon Yett, Development Director of British High Commission Matt Cannell, European Commission Representative Isabella D’Haudt, and Country Manager of START Fund Sajid Rayhan, among others, spoke at the press conference.

Meanwhile, officials predicted less possibility of fresh flooding in Bangladesh till mid July simultaneously they said the ongoing flood may longer due to slow passing of water through major rivers and their tributaries.  

"Both northern and northeastern parts of Bangladesh witnessed

severe flooding on June 15, this year and vast swaths of these regions are still reeling from catastrophic impact of the deluge as a result of slow receding of water," Pritom Kumar Sarkar, assistant engineer of Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC) told BSS on Saturday.  

But the flood situation in north and northwestern worsened further after swelling of major rivers as inside Bangladesh and upstream regions recorded heavy downpour in late June, he added.  

Water levels at 58 river stations monitored by Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC) have marked rise while 47 stations recorded fall.

Among the 109 monitored river stations, four have been registered steady while water levels at five stations are flowing above the danger level, a bulletin issued by the FFWC said on Saturday.