10,000 marooned as Kobadak busts dam in Satkhira again
Eid, Puja festivities a far cry for 5 lakh people
At least seven villages in Gabura union adjacent to the Sundarbans in Shyamnagar upazila submerged on Sunday night as water entered the area following collapse of an embankment for the third time at Khalshibunia point on Kabodak River due to violent tide.
As 200 feet embankment collapsed, the sluice gate was also devoured into the river caused by heavy pressure of water from the river due to high tide
Over 10,000 people in the areas were marooned on Sunday night inundating the fresh areas one after another and
Earlier on September 4 and 16, at least 15 villages in the area submerged as water entered the area through breached embankment at Khalshibunia and Lebubunia points on River Kabodak.
The authorities repaired the collapsed embankment at a cost of Tk 11 lakh on September 21 but the repaired embankment collapsed again at the same point on Saturday and Sunday night.
Over 6,000 homeless people have taken shelter on high lands in the areas as hundreds of kutcha houses were damaged.
Affected people are suffering from acute scarcity of drinking water and food, said Sharifa Khatun and Fatema Khatun of village Sora in Shyamnagar upazila.
The worst affected villages are Khalshebunia, Madhya Khalshibunia, Lebubunia, Gabura, Chakbara, Sora and Laxmikhola in Pratapnagar union.
Local people said cracks developed on the repaired embankment on Friday and their attempt to reconstruct the embankment on self-help basis failed as the embankment finally collapsed on Sunday night due to violent tide in the river.
Contacted, Satkhira Water Development Board Assistant Engineer Shahadat Hossain said they are trying to reconstruct collapsed embankment on an emergency basis.
Meanwhile, Eid-ul-Fitre, the greatest religious festival of the Muslims, and Durga Puja, the largest religious festival of the Hindus, will bring no jot for over five lakh people in Kabodak basin areas under Satkhira, Jessore and Khulna districts.
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