Bangladesh flood toll climbs to 298

By Xinhua

Dhaka : The toll in the floods in Bangladesh climbed to 298 Monday with reports of 30 more deaths reaching the capital from various parts of the country.


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Officials in the Food and Disaster Management Ministry said more than 10 million people have lost their homes to the floods as the first of the five Saudi cargo planes with relief material worth over $50 million is expected to arrive Monday night.

Drowning, snakebite and various water-borne diseases caused the deaths.

The monsoon flood situation had showed an improvement in the last few days with the retreat of waters in major rivers. But the heavy downpour from Sunday again inundated as many as 39 out of the country’s 64 districts.

A bulletin of the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC) said the downpour triggered by a depression that formed over West Bengal and the adjoining area in Bangladesh has worsened the flood situation across the country, particularly in the capital.

The bulletin said the water levels of five rivers surrounding Dhaka had gone up further and were above their danger marks.

An official of the Health Ministry said more than 45,000 people had been infected by diarrhoea and that many by skin disease and respiratory problems in the flood-affected districts.

Nearly 3,000 medical teams are working round-the-clock to treat the people.

Five Saudi cargo planes loaded with foodstuff, medicine and other humanitarian assistance worth $50 million are on their way to flood-stricken Bangladesh.

The first consignment will reach Dhaka Monday night and other consignments will be reaching in the next 10 days, Saudi Arabian Ambassador to Bangladesh Abdullah Al-Obaid Al-Namia told reporters after his meeting with Bangladesh Foreign Advisor Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury.

This is so far the largest relief aid from any single country for the victims of the current floods.

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