6 killed as heavy rains lash Ctg

At least six people died and four others were injured in separate incidents triggered by heavy rains, including landslides and a wall collapse, in three districts yesterday.

Of the dead, three were in Cox’s Bazar, two in Chattogram and one in Rangamati.

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According to Bangladesh Meteorological Department Senior Meteorologist Bazlur Rashid, heavy rainfall will continue across the country for the next two or three days.

“The coastal areas will witness more rainfall compared to the rest of the country. A depression over the Bay has resulted in heavy rainfall amid an active monsoon,” he told The Daily Star yesterday.

The highest amount of rainfall was recorded at 394 millimetres in Chattogram in the 24 hours ending at 6:00pm yesterday, according to a BMD bulletin.

In Cox’s Bazar, 30-year-old Nasima Akter was killed in a landslide yesterday afternoon at Dariyanagar along Marine Drive Road.

Sheikh Mohammad Ali, officer-in-charge of Cox’s Bazar Model Police Station, said the incident occurred around 1:00pm when a hillside collapsed onto her house.

Nasima’s husband, Jasim Uddin, who was injured in the incident, is undergoing treatment at a hospital, he said.

Meanwhile, 40-year-old Md Manik died after a rain-softened mud wall collapsed at his home in Haldia Palong Union of Cox’s Bazar’s Ukhiya upazila.

His wife, Shakera Begum, said the incident occurred around 3:00pm when the wall of their mud-and-tin house suddenly collapsed, leaving Manik critically injured. He was taken to a hospital, where doctors declared him dead, said Mujibur Rahman, officer-in-charge of Ukhiya Police Station.

In Cox’s Bazar’s Maheshkhali upazila, 21-month-old Rumaisa Khatun died after falling into a pit filled with rainwater in Sonadia East Para area.

The child’s maternal uncle, Md Emran, said several pits near their house had filled with water due to days of heavy rain. Rumaisa accidentally fell into one of the pits. She was rushed to Cox’s Bazar Sadar Hospital, where the attending doctor declared her dead, said Md Abdus Sultan, officer-in-charge of Moheshkhali Police Station.

In Chattogram, a man was killed and three of his family members, including two children, were injured after a wall collapsed at their residence.

The deceased was identified as Shafiqul Islam, 32.

Police, locals and fire service officials said the family lived in a fragile tin-shed house at the foot of a hill in East Nasirabad’s Rahman Nagar area.

Continuous heavy rain had reportedly weakened the guide wall of the hill, causing it to collapse onto the house around 3:30pm, said Mohammad Kamruzzaman, senior station officer of Bayezid Fire Service.

“Upon receiving information, fire service personnel rushed to the spot, rescued the two children and the woman, and recovered Shafiqul’s body,” he said.

Shafiqul’s mother-in-law Monjila Begum, 45, his four-year-old son Sohan, and two-year-old daughter Saifa were rushed to Chattogram Medical College Hospital for treatment, said Jahedul Islam, officer-in-charge of Panchlaish Police Station.

In Chattogram’s Rangunia upazila, 56-year-old Renu Akter was killed after a section of a hill and a tree collapsed onto her house around 2:00pm in Isakhali Guchhagram area, said Rangunia Upazila Nirbahi Officer Md Nazmul Hasan.

In Rangamati, Lakshmi Bilash Chakma, 70, a resident of West Lalyaghona area, died after the base of a tree hit him on the head on a hillside in Baghaichhari Municipality yesterday morning.

Locals and government officials said Lakshmi was digging a drain around 7:30am to clear water that had accumulated near a stack of cattle fodder. At that moment, the base of a large tree on the hill became loose due to heavy rainfall and fell on him.

He died on the spot, said Baghaichhari UNO Amena Marjan.

Meanwhile, HSC and equivalent exams scheduled for today in Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar and Rangamati have been postponed in view of the ongoing flood situation.

The Bangladesh Inter-Education Board Coordination Committee announced the decision in a notice yesterday.

However, exams under other education boards will be held as scheduled.

The notice clarified that examinations in Bandarban and Khagrachhari -- which also fall under the Chattogram Education Board -- will proceed as usual.

The district administration has opened 204 shelters across the district and temporarily shut down the Sajek Valley tourist destination until further notice due to the risk of landslides triggered by torrential rain.

Earlier on Monday, 10 people were killed in separate landslides across Cox’s Bazar.

Cox’s Bazar Assistant Meteorologist Abdul Hannan said settlements on cut hills, houses built on unstable slopes, and persistent rainfall have sharply increased landslide risks.

The district has been witnessing heavy rainfall over the past few days, leaving several hundred families marooned by floodwaters in Teknaf upazila.

Ferry services between Teknaf and St Martin’s Island have remained suspended for five days due to rough seas.

Meanwhile, three flights were diverted from Chattogram’s Shah Amanat International Airport due to heavy rain yesterday.

Two international flights and one domestic flight were sent to Dhaka after failing to land safely, said Ibrahim Khalil, public relations officer of the airport.

The Cox’s Bazar-bound Parjatak Express train, which left Dhaka, was stranded yesterday afternoon after floodwater submerged a section of the railway track near Jan Ali Hat Station in Chattogram.

Due to heavy rain, Chattogram authorities have stepped up evacuation efforts in vulnerable hill areas.

Chattogram Forest Division has suspended tourist entry to waterfalls across the district until further notice because of the risk posed by heavy rain and rising water flow.

In Bandarban, low-lying areas were inundated due to heavy rain, while the water levels of the Sangu and Matamuhuri rivers are rising rapidly.

Authorities have prepared 220 emergency shelters across the district.

The district administration has closed all tourist attractions until July 10, citing safety concerns.

In Khagrachhari, continuous rain over the past three days has heightened fears of landslides, with around 35,000 to 36,000 families living on vulnerable hills and hill slopes, according to the district administration.

Deputy Commissioner Md Anwar Sadat said shelters are ready to respond to floods, landslides and other disasters.

Waterlogging has disrupted traffic on the Maischhari road in Mahalchhari, while parts of the Dighinala-Longadu road have also gone underwater.

(Our correspondents from Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, Bandarban, Rangamati and Khagrachhari contributed to the report.)