Cox’s Bazar Flood Situation Improves Slightly

In Cox's Bazar's Chakaria and Pekua upazilas, the flood situation has marginally improved.

Due to the recent severe rains and flooding flowing upstream, large portions of the two upazilas were submerged.

Some portions of Chakaria Upazila have seen a decrease in floodwater since Tuesday night, but new regions on the downstream side have seen an increase.

Although the floodwater has subsided in some raised portions of Chakaria, numerous villages in the coastal regions of Pekua upazila are still under water. At the same time, fresh floodwater has invaded Chakaria upazila's five coastal unions.

Due to floodwater spilling across the highway in Chandanaish, road contact with Cox's Bazar and Bandarban districts of the Chittagong division is still halted.

Flooding has devastated all 25 unions in Chakaria and Pekua upazilas.

In these locations, hundreds of thousands of people are still stranded in the sea. The Matamuhuri River's water level has decreased since Tuesday night due to less rain, but it is still flowing above the danger threshold.

Landslides have caused at least 15 river embankments to break.

Because of this erosion, floodwater is entering the area and flooding additional places. 

According to reports, those living in the Matamuhuri River watershed are in terrible shape.

Seven persons have passed tragically in the previous six days at the camps for the Rohingya, Pekua, Ramu, and Chakaria after being swept away by landslides and snakebites.

In the flood-affected districts of the Chakaria and Pekua upazilas, all educational institutions have been shuttered. These academic institutions have been designated as shelters for flood victims. 

In these two upazilas, thousands of people sought refuge in storm shelters. According to Cox's Bazar Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Shahin Imran, many of them have begun to return home.

According to the DC, the upazilas of Chakaria and Pekua have all experienced the most flooding as a result of this storm. The administration has already provided Tk7 lakh in financial aid and 50,000 tons of rice to the flood-affected districts. 

In addition to this, he said, the impacted individuals have received dry food.

Personnel from the Army, Navy, and Coast Guard also participated in rescue missions and distributed food to flood-affected communities.

Locals claimed that water from upstream cannot be swiftly drained since there are not enough culverts at various sluice gates and under-construction railway lines for the drainage of water in the coastal districts.

The Matamuhuri River is still running over the danger threshold, according to Jamal Morshed, an upazila officer with the Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) for Chakaria upazila. 

He said that the river's movement caused cracks to form in the Kainyarkum, BM Char, and Mehernama dykes. 

In addition to this, the official said, there is always a chance that the BWDB's embankments would collapse in other places.