BANGLADESH: Hundreds of people in Northern Bangladesh are homeless and jobless after their factories and homes were swallowed by flood waters

Floods that swept across low-lying Bangladesh for nearly a month are receding but thousands of people are still living in makeshift homes in Siraganj, which is around 150 kilometres north of the capital Dhaka. Millions have been affected by a second wave of monsoon flooding that has swept away homes, crops, roads and bridges across much of the country's north and northeast. Many victims face hunger, have no jobs or income because their crops have been ruined or businesses disrupted. Hafiza Begum, a local villager in Belkuchi said they badly needed help. "We have not got any relief. We have to survive, so I have sold one of my cows and a portion of my land," she said. At least 40 people died in the latest deluge in the north and northeast, raising the total death toll to nearly 900 since the low-lying country was hit by the year's first massive flooding in July, according to officials. Thousands of families driven by the latest floods huddled on highways and embankments, with their cattle and whatever else they could bring along. Many were still stranded in their flooded villages, living on roof tops or boats. Poverty is a way of life in Bangladesh's remote northern region where people grow just one rice crop a year and there are few factories offering jobs. Many of the loom factories which provided much needed jobs to villagers have been destroyed in the floods. As the Muslim festival of Ramadan approaches, many residents are feeling hopeless. "The Eid festival is coming, how we will celebrate the Eid? We have no jobs, no money," said one local Amir Hamza. Waterborne illnesses, such as diarrhoea, were spreading again, health officials said. More than 3,500 people were reported sick. The Flood Forecasting and Warning Center in Dhaka said easing rains had improved the situation in the northeast but conditions had deteriorated in some districts north of the capital. These include Jamalpur, Netrokona and Sirajganj.

ITN Source | September 20, 2007

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