Flood may hit Dhaka city if rains continue

Yasir Wardad | Published: September 01, 2015 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

Water level in rivers around Dhaka witnessed a rise in the last four days, triggering fears of a flood.
Flood and meteorology experts, however, predicted that the flood might turn moderate to severe one if the present trend of rain continues.
They said the eastern part of the city will be worst affected if flood hits the capital.
The city witnessed 38 mm rainfall in 24 hours ending at 6.00 am Monday, the Bangladesh Meteorology Department data showed.
There was 6 mm rainfall in the city between 12.10 pm to 3.00 pm on Monday. This caused water logging in many parts of the capital.
The Met office data showed that the axis of monsoon now runs through many parts of India and thence northeastwards across the central part of Bangladesh.
Rising water level in the Brahmaputra-Jamuna and Ganges-Padma river basins, caused by incessant rainfall, coupled with shrinking water bodies in the city, might result in a flood in the capital.
The country's water experts and officials have predicted that a flood might hit the capital as the Jamuna, the Brahmaputra and the Padma have been continuing to swell, flowing 11 centimetre (cm) to 50 cm above their red mark at different points.
The most worrying is that the Jamuna has crossed the danger mark (DM) at downstream Sirajganj point and is now flowing 11-20 cm above red mark showing a sharp rising trend. It was below the red level by 20 cm five days back.
The rivers surrounding Dhaka city-Shitalakhya, Banshi, Balu, Turag and Dhaleswari-are flowing close to the DM and are likely to swell further if the Jamuna continues to rise.
Water level of the Buriganga was below 100 cm of the danger mark.
Sub-Divisional Engineer at the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre Md. Arifuzzaman Bhuiyan said if the rain continues and the Jamuna keeps on swelling, the city might witness a moderate-to-severe flood.
He said the river Kalinganga in Manikganj and the Dhaleswari in Tangail Sadar are key points which link water flows between Dhaka and major rivers.
Water was flowing above the danger level in the two rivers, he said.
The Sitalakhya at Narayanganj, the Balu river at Demra, the Turag river at Mirpur are also on the rise but below the red mark.
Md. Arifuzzaman said the Dhaleswari in Narayanganj will cross the danger mark within next two days if rain continues. This may flood a vast area of the city.
Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies (BCAS) Executive director Dr Atiq Rahman said lack of a flood protection embankment in the eastern part of Dhaka has made half of the city vulnerable to flood.
In the 1998 flood, almost all areas of Dhaka East were flooded by spillover from the Balu River, said.
He said the water resources ministry took a project 'Dhaka Coordinated Flood Control Dam' which is yet to be executed.
The urban expert also said apart from constructing dams, internal damage control system is necessary to protect the city from flood.
He said the city's drains cannot handle even a 30mm rainfall.
However, a BCAS study showed that about 52 per cent of the lowlands and 33 per cent of the water bodies ---rivers, lakes-around Dhaka have been lost to urbanisation between 1960 and 2008.
Former director general of the Water Resources Planning Organisation (WARPO) M Enamul Hoque said if a flood hits the city now, damage will surpass that of the 1998 flood as most of the water bodies that help store flood water have been filled up during the last one and half decades.
He said without improving the drainage system, no dam can save Dhaka. He pointed out that despite having the DND dam, a vast area of south-west Dhaka remained under water for a month in 1998 mainly due to absence of a drainage system.
However, the FFWC forecast that the Brahmaputra and the Jamuna are likely to rise while rivers in the northeastern region also might continue to rise in next 72 hours starting from 6 pm Monday.
It also predicted that in the next 48 hours, the overall flood situation in north, central and north-eastern districts of the country might deteriorate.
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