During the monsoon, landslides are an ever-present danger in many parts of Bangladesh. There is no stopping them because of the ever-increasing cutting of hillsides and the spreading encroachments on government land.
Unfortunately, it's always the poor who are the most vulnerable during such times.
In the first half of July this year, 16 people reportedly died in rain-induced landslides and wall collapses in three locations of the Cox's Bazaar district of Bangladesh. More than 450 families have also been displaced. As this story was going to press, news arrived of another three people perishing in wall collapses in the Sirajganj and Comilla districts.
Casualty
Upon receiving news of these landslides, the government's food and disaster management ministry immediately dispatched 7,335 Swiss francs for distribution among those affected, with a further financial contribution for the families for each individual casualty. The ministry has also sent around 1,500 Swiss francs for construction work and 50 tonnes of rice for distribution among the affected people, while they await relocation to safer land.
A team from the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and Bangladesh Red Crescent Society (BDRCS), having completed the initial assessment, has sent 60 boxes of BP-5 biscuits and 350 family kits to the affected families.
"After hearing about the landslide, I immediately rushed to the affected area and was the first to reach there," said Syed Alam, a 29-year-old BDRCS cyclone preparedness programme volunteer.
Fear
"It was dark and was raining so hard that I almost couldn't see anything at first. But what I saw later filled me with unprecedented fear," added Syed Alam.
"I saw people buried up to their nose in mud and debris. Some of them were even little children. I prayed that they would still be breathing."
Syed Alam immediately started digging and rescued a woman. However, the rest of her family had perished before the rescue operation had started. Along with two other volunteers, Mokhtar Ahmed and Nurul Alam, Syed Alam dug out four bodies - including three of the woman's children.
Damage
The volunteers were later joined by more BDRCS personnel and local authority workers. By the time the rescue operation was over, Syed Alam had suffered such major damage to his lungs that he had to be admitted to hospital for three days.
"These dedicated and brave volunteers risked their lives and performed outstandingly as they rescued and evacuated hundreds of families to safety, provided them with first aid, helped bury the dead and sent the injured to hospitals," says Ahmad Sami, an IFRC disaster management officer.
The volunteers' efforts were greatly appreciated by the local population, including the authorities.
Safer
There are about 20,000 people living in the hills of Rangamati in the south-eastern part of the country who are vulnerable to landslides during the monsoon. District information officials have urged these people, through loudspeaker announcements, to leave their homes and take shelter in safer places.
Given the rising frequency of natural disasters in Bangladesh, people are hoping that this year's monsoon will not prove to be another catastrophe.
|
 |
 |
|
|
Hut damaged during the landslide in Teknaf sub-district of Cox's Bazar. (p17933)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
From left, Mokhtar Ahmed, Syed Alam and Nurul Alam, three rescue-trained volunteers from Bangladesh Red Crescent. (p17934)
|
|
News
