Port city dwellers cool off in overnight rain
The people of Chittagong city breathe a sigh of relief as rain started falling on Thursday night following a fortnight of pre-monsoon heat wave. The photo was taken in the city's Jamal Khan area. Photo: Prabir Das
A fortnight of suffering in the sweltering heat seemingly ceased as it began drizzling Thursday evening. Soon the light falls turned to heavy shower, bringing some respite to the city people from the extreme of the pre-monsoon temperature. Accompanied by cold breeze, the downpour continued for several hours throughout the night. From yesterday morning, it has been raining intermittently. Over the last 24 hours till 12:00noon yesterday, the Chittagong Met Office recorded 83.4 millimetres of rain. Officials said the rainfall was caused by monsoon winds and likely to continue for the next 24 hours. The downpour not only relieved people, but put them in misery when it came to commuting. Rokeya Begum, a resident of Chawk Bazar area, was seen standing at the entrance of Chittagong Shopping Complex, trying to avail a rickshaw or auto-rickshaw home. “I feel relieved for the shower, as we expected it for the last two weeks to get respite from severe heat. But on the other hand, I along with my children have to wait for hours to return home, which is very much tiring", she said. Rickshaw pullers are not interested in going to Chawk Bazar area, while the drivers of CNG-run auto-rickshaws demand very high fares, she complained. Shafiqul Islam, who carried out his duty at his office in Muradpur, was trying to catch a rickshaw ride to his house in Chandgaon residential area Thursday evening. Taking shelter under the roof of a roadside shop, he expressed his resentment at the reluctance of the rickshaw pullers. “The drivers of rickshaws and CNG-run auto-rickshaws seem to feel very happy, seeing the miseries of the commuters”, Shafiqul said, talking to the correspondent. “On a normal day, they request us to ride their rickshaws. But whenever it begins raining, they show reluctance". Locals said some low-lying areas, including Halishahar, Bakalia, Probortak intersection, Bahaddarhat, Kapasgola and Chawk Bazar, had gone under knee-deep water due to the ceaseless rain. The drains also overflowed, forcing people into wading through filthy water all their way.
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