Parts of Chattogram submerged due to heavy rain

Incessant rainfall for the last three days caused waterlogging in low-lying areas of Chattogram port city, UNB reports.

Some people were seen wading through knee to waist-deep water to reach their destinations in the morning due to lack of transport.

Office-goers and others had to pay extra fares to reach their workplaces.

Many areas of the city including Bakolia, Agrabad, Muradpur, No 2 Gate, Bohoddar Hat were submerged by rainwater, triggering traffic jam in different parts of the city.

Mohiuddin Ahmed, a CNG-run auto-rickshaw driver, said “As a major portion of the city was inundated I preferred to use Akhtaruzzaman flyover to reach the designated place but I got stuck on the flyover for one hour due to traffic congestion.”

Besides, vehicular movement in many parts of the city remained suspended due to waterlogging.

Plaban Kumar Biswas, an officer of local administration, said four people were killed in separate incidents of landslide in Akbar Shah area on Saturday.

Biswajit Chowdhury, a meteorologist of Patenga Weather Office, said 48.10 mm of rainfalls have been recorded in the past 24 hours till Saturday noon and the rains are likely to continue till Sunday.

Already river ports have been asked to hoist local cautionary signal No 2.

The local administration on Saturday conducted a drive to evict the residents of the hilly areas in Rangamati to save them from possible landslides.

Rangamati deputy commissioner Mizanur Rahman along with Fire Service team, Red Crescent and other social organisations visited the risky hills in the district on Friday and asked the residents to vacate the area.

They also sent some residents to the shelter homes.

All preparations have been taken to avoid loss of lives due to landslides during monsoon, he said.

Already we have identified 28 risky areas in Rangamati and 19 shelter homes have been kept ready to accommodate people, he added.