Flood situation dips in 17 dists

Flood situation in 17 districts deteriorated yesterday due to continued rains and onrush of water from the upstream, affecting several lakh people.

The districts are Sylhet, Sunamganj, Moulavibazar, Habiganj, Comilla, Cox's Bazar, Khagrachhari, Rangamati, Feni, Noakhali, Chittagong, Bandarban, Gaibandha, Sherpur, Tangail, Netrokona and Jamalpur.

Meanwhile, the government yesterday allocated 1,300 tonnes of rice for the flood-hit people in those districts.

The Flood Forecasting Centre said the flash flood situation in the Meghna and the South Eastern Hill basins, especially in Sylhet, Sunamganj, Moulavibazar, Habiganj, Netrakona, Khagrachhari and Cox's Bazar might worsen. The rivers in these basins rose at almost all the points.

The Brahmaputra-Jamuna and the Ganges-Padma continued to rise at all points and the other rivers in the two basins at most of the points.

Water level at 49 of the 85 monitoring points on the rivers rose yesterday, fell at 16 points, remained steady at one point and crossed danger level at other points.

Our Netrokona correspondent reported that about two lakh people in seven upazila of the district were marooned as food waters submerged fresh areas yesterday.

Six out of seven unions of Durgapur upazila and as many unions of Kalmakanda upazila along with vast areas of Khaliaguri, Madan Mohanganj Atpara and Bahatta upazlia have gone under five to six feet water.

About 500 thatched houses were washed away by rushing water.