Feni floods: Water everywhere, Farzana loses contact with entire family

Teacher Farzana Akter, who has taken shelter at a place, has lost contact with her family members since Thursday evening after floods marooned them at their house in the Uttar Tongirpar Hajibari area of No. 10 Chanua union of Feni Sadar upazila.

She told Prothom Alo that floodwaters submerged the entire area and seven members including children of her entire family are left stranded.

Farzana Akter last contacted her sister-in-law Tania Akater around 7:00 pm on Thursday. Tania informed her that several hundred people from their locality took shelter at a local mosque, but floodwaters submerged the ground floor of the building and were about to reach the first floor. Nobody could go out as roads were already under water. After that, she lost contact with her family.

Kamal Hossain is from Nijkunjora village of No. 10 Ghopal union of Feni’s Chhagalnaiya upazila. His 12 relatives have been trapped for 12 days at his house.

He further said that the situation has worsened, food did not reach the trapped people and drinking water was also about to finish.

Kamal Hossain added they had already rescued many neighbours and sheltered them.

Heavy rain and water from upstream inundated six upazila of Feni districts, affecting millions of people.

According to the district administration sources, floodwaters submerged the entire area of Chhagalnaiya, Fulgazi and Porshuram upazilas and 80 per cent of the area in Sadar and Daganbhuiyan upazilas. Floodwater has reached all the unions of Sonagazi upazila.

Floods affected about 3.5 million people and left about 1 million trapped. Electricity and mobile networks have gone down, disrupting the communication. The crisis of drinking water is also intensifying.

The army, navy and Border Guard Bangladesh, Fire Service and Civil Defence and various voluntary originations have been operating rescue missions in the flood-affect areas.