Flooded Bangladesh Braces for More Monsoon Rains

DHAKA, Bangladesh, August 4, 2004 (ENS) - The death toll from monsoon rain and flooding continues to mount across Bangladesh, with nearly 600 people dead and millions of people homeless. The Bangladesh Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre reports today that the overall flood situation in the country is improving and flood waters are receding in most areas, yet aid workers warn of disease and say the worst is yet to come.

Threaded by a network of 230 rivers, Bangladesh suffers annual flooding caused by monsoon rains and ice melting high in the Himalayas. But this year the country is experiencing the worst floods since 1998 - 25 million people are affected.

In the capital, Dhaka, and other population centers, the sewer systems have collapsed, and about 1.5 million people have taken refuge in temporary shelters.

Food is distributed to flood victims by UK's Save the Children in Kurigam, Islamic Relief in Rangpur, and Terre des Hommes in Gaibandha, as well as the UN World Food Programme. (Photo courtesy WFP)

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) says almost 60 percent of these monsoon refugees are children, who are the most vulnerable to life threatening water borne diseases.

UNICEF says US$13 million is urgently needed to supply 60 million water purification tablets, intravenous supplies to manage diarrhea and cholera outbreaks, and food for infants and children. Ensuring sanitation and a supply of clean water to shelters is also a priority.

UNICEF has already distributed five million water purification tablets, oral rehydration salts, baby food, water cans and the childrens' aid agency has given 25,000 bags of intravenous (IV) fluids to health facilities and temporary medical centers to combat diarrhea dehydration.

Today, aid workers are bracing for more monsoon rains, as forecasted, and a high tide in the Bay of Bengal that is expected this week.

Douglas Casson Coutts, the UN World Food Programme country representative in Dhaka, warned that while the floodwaters are currently receding, Bangladesh may well be in for a cataclysmic flood in mid-August, when the next monsoon rains will be unable to drain into the waterlogged ground.

"We have to be vigilant," Coutts said. "What we have seen so far is as bad as any floods in Bangladesh have been. But there may be worse to come, and we need to be ready."

Bangladeshi girl holds a bag of high-energy biscuits from the World Food Programme. (Photo courtesy WFP)

The Bangladeshi government, which has appealed for international help to cope with the devastation, estimates the flooding has caused damage totalling US$6.6 billion dollars to property and infrastructure.

The government says up to 20 million people will be in need of food aid for the next few months. Food and Disaster Minister Chowdhury Kamal Yusuf says the government plans to offer food aid to 20 million peopleduring the next five months.

In response, a number of key donors have come forward. Britain’s Department for International Development Monday announced a £5million (US$9.1 million) donation to WFP for the immediate distribution of rice, pulses, oil, salt and high energy biscuits to three million people.

The U.S. Agency for International Development, has pledged US$960,000 for post-flood aid in addition to a previous donation of US$60,000 earmarked for immediate relief, the official Bangladesh news agency BSS said.

WFP is coordinating the overall emergency response to the floods by the UN and the NGO community, the donors and the government of Bangladesh, whose representatives have combined to form the Disaster Emergency Response Group.

“Even though people in Bangladesh are used to grappling with flood damage every year, they will need a lot of help this year in recovering their household stability and preparing for the next planting season,” Coutts said. “The international community must not forget about the enormous problems here after the disaster images fade from the TV screen.”

Across the region, more than 50 million people are affected by this disaster in three countries.

In the northeastern states of India, at least 482 people have died and nearly 30 million people – most of whom already live below the poverty line, have been affected, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent says. Millions have had their homes and belongings washed away and are living in makeshift shelters, in precarious conditions, on river embankments or high ground.

In Nepal, the death toll has passed 200, and an estimated 800,000 people have been affected by widespread flooding and landslides in the eastern and central regions of the country, which are among the poorest areas. Large areas of paddy fields and other agricultural land have been swept away.