6 people were killed in a landslide in Cox’s Bazar after 12 hours of continuous heavy rain. Three of them are residents of South Dikkul area of suburban Jheelunga and three are residents of Ukhia Rohingya camp.
Cox’s Bazar Additional Deputy Commissioner (Revenue) Vibhishan Kanti Das confirmed the information of their death to Prothom Alo.
90 percent of the city is submerged due to heavy rains. At least 35 side streets including the city’s main road, beach road have been submerged in rainwater and the goods of hundreds of shops have been destroyed. Thousands of houses were submerged in water. People have to suffer due to traffic stop on the road. 18 roads in the hotel motel zone on the beach have been submerged due to flooding. Thousands of tourists in more than five hundred hotels and motels are stranded.
Local public representatives and local residents said that the rain started from 9 am on Thursday, but the heavy rain started from 12:30 pm. After that, heavy rain for 12 hours till 12:30 pm stopped the work life of eight lakh people of the entire city. No one has seen such heavy rainfall in the last 50 years.
Heavy rains have caused major cracks in more than 12 hills inside the city. Landslides are happening in several parts. Three members of the family of Mizanur Rahman, a local resident, died in a landslide in the Dakshin Dikkul area of suburban Jhelonga at around two o’clock yesterday. The deceased were Mizan’s wife Ankhi Mani (28), daughter Miha Jannat (12) and Latifa Islam (9). Mizan’s house was at the foot of the hill.
AB Hannan, assistant meteorologist of Cox’s Bazar Meteorological Office, said that 401 millimeters of rain was recorded in Cox’s Bazar in 24 hours from 9 am yesterday to 9 am today. This is the highest rainfall record (in one day) for the current season (2024). Heavy rains may continue.
Additional District Commissioner Vibhishan Kanti Das told Prothom Alo that the district administration has given 75,000 rupees to the families of the three victims who went to the spot in Jhelongja this morning. People are being evacuated from dangerous locations in the mountains. Four separate teams are fielded under the leadership of the Magistrate.
No one has seen such flooding in 50 years
From 5 pm to 10 pm yesterday, various areas of the city were visited, the entire city was submerged in the heavy rains and the water flowing down from the mountains. Local people said that the heaviest rain fell from 3 pm to 12 pm. As a result, the city’s Kalatali beach road was submerged in rainwater. 18 internal roads leading to more than 500 hotels and guesthouses on both sides of the road were also submerged. Thousands of tourists were stranded in hotels. Sugandha road from Kalatali road to the beach is also submerged. A handful of CNG-powered auto-rickshaws and battery-powered easybikes (TomToms) are plying on the road, but they are unable to enter Oligli.
The city’s busiest five-kilometer main road is also submerged in water. Hundreds of shops, offices-courts and businesses in Bazarghata, Barabazar, Anderson Road, Tekpara, Burmese Market area, Buddha Mandir Road, Goldighirpar, Tarabniachara, Rumaliachara have accumulated rain water. Thousands of houses were submerged in water.
Mufizur Rahman (55), a resident of Baharchhara area and central leader of Jatiya Party, said that he had never seen such heavy rain in his life. The entire baharchhara including his homestead has been submerged in the monsoon.
Hundreds of houses in Samitipara, Kutubdiapara, Fadnardale, Mostaikapara, Bandarpara, North Nuniachha of Ward No. 1 of the municipality have been submerged in rain water. Akhtar Kamal, councilor of Ward No. 1, said that if the heavy rains continue, at least 10,000 houses in this ward will be submerged. At least 70 thousand climate refugees and floating laborers live in this ward. Thousands of people are facing shortage of food and drinking water as cooking is stopped.
At least 23 by-roads are submerged in some areas including Pahartali, Baidyaghona, Ghonarpara, Badshaghona, Khaja Manzil, Lighthouse, Kalatali, Central Bus Terminal, Larpara of wards 6, 7, 8 and 9 of the municipality. Shafiqul Islam, a businessman in Pahartali area, said that three roads of Pahartali have been submerged by the water of the hill, and water has entered hundreds of houses and five educational institutions. Women and children are suffering a lot.
Cox’s Bazar Hotel Motel Guest House Owners Association President Abul Kashem Sikdar said that waterlogging occurs in the hotel motel zone only when it rains heavily. Then there is the suffering of tourists, there is a slowdown in trade and commerce. Rain water cannot go down to the sea and rivers quickly because the soil of the hill cutting has come down and filled the drains. Hence waterlogging is occurring. There were several heavy rains in last July as well. There was still flooding across the city.
Ayachur Rahman, a resident of Tarabuniachara and a senior lawyer, said that after the fall of the Awami League government on August 5, most of the municipal councils, including the mayor, went into hiding. The city’s drains are full of garbage. Due to heavy rains and the water coming down from the mountains, the water cannot go down through the drains, so waterlogging has occurred all over the city. Common people are suffering due to road traffic being stopped.
