BANGLADESH: Disease fears rise as South Asian floods kill 320

Fears of epidemic rise in flooded outskirts of Bangladeshi capital Dhaka. Fears grew on Sunday (August 5) that epidemics would strike the millions marooned or forced from their homes by South Asia's catastrophic floods as the death toll climbed to 320 and criticism of relief efforts spread. The last fortnight has seen some of the worst floods in living memory affecting about 35 million people in the region, 10 million of them made homeless or left stranded. Valuable crops have been destroyed as rivers burst their banks. Much of eastern India and two-thirds of Bangladesh's 64 districts are inundated. In Bangladesh, 120 people are now confirmed dead, with 39 more drowning or dying from fatal snakebites, said a senior official at the government's flood monitoring cell. At least 37 others were missing. More than 20 million people in more than 40 of the country's 64 district were affected, while up to 300,000 had moved into relief camps or were living on raised highways and river embankments. Floods have also inundated part of Bangladesh's capital, Dhaka, forcing many to take shelter with relatives and friends. Meanwhile, shortages of food, safe drinking water and medicines have triggered outbreaks of diarrhoea, dysentery and other waterborne diseases in the flood shelters. Weather officials said the floods were receding in the north but the situation could worsen in central districts and in Dhaka. The country's army-backed government has promised an all-out effort to save flood victims but relief efforts were inadequate, officials said. Political parties have refused to participate, demanding the government end a ban on their activity.

ITN Source | August 5, 2007

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