Sylhet Bureau

Due to continued rainfall and landslides in India's Cherrapunji, the water level of Sylhet and Sunamganj rivers has started to rise in the second phase.

In the meantime, many areas have been completely submerged by water entering the low-lying areas. In the last 24 hours, the water level of the Kushiara river has decreased slightly, but the surma river crossed the danger level. Residents of Sylhet and Sunamganj are going to be affected by floods again.

The Sylhet Water Development Board said that the water of the Surma river crossed the limit at Kanaighat point on Monday (July 1) morning. Again, due to the landslide, the water turned into a magical river and flooded a part of Anwarpur on the Tahirpur-Sunamganj road. So the locals are using the boat.

In this direction, 39.6 millimeters of rainfall has been recorded in 24 hours from 6 am on Sunday to 6 am on Monday. But rain increased this morning. Sylhet recorded 65 mm of rain within three hours from 6 am to 9 am on Monday.

The Meteorological Department has warned of heavy rain in the region. According to the warning, heavy (44 to 88 mm of rain in 24 hours) to very heavy (above 89 mm in 24 hours) rains may occur in Sylhet division for the next 72 hours from 4 pm on Sunday.

In this regard, Sylhet Meteorological Office Assistant Meteorologist Shah Md. Sajib Hossain said, '65 mm rainfall was recorded in three hours on Monday. There is a chance to occur heavy to more heavy rainfall.'

According to Sylhet Water Development Board (WDB), at 9 am on Monday, the water of Surma river was flowing 30 cm above the water level at Kanaighat point. Earlier, at 6 am, 8 cm flowed over the danger line. The depth of water at this point is 12.75 cm.

According to Sylhet district administration sources, 10,903 people have taken shelter in the shelter center of 10 upazilas out of 13 upazilas till Sunday. 653 shelters are ready in the district. Out of this, 219 shelters are occupied. However, there are no people in shelter centers in Sylhet City Corporation and Sadar Upazila.

Water levels of rivers in Sylhet are rising again, raising concerns about potential another round of flooding in the region after May and June.

Although water levels of all rivers except the Kushiyara in Fenchuganj had fallen below the danger level over the past week, the Surma River in Kanaighat surpassed the danger mark again on Monday morning.

Water levels of the Surma and Kushiyara rivers were also on the rise at five other five monitoring points.

Heavy rainfall occurred in Sylhet on Sunday night and Monday morning, with rain also reported in Cherrapunji.

According to the Bangladesh Water Development Board's (BWDB) bulletin on Sunday morning, at 9am, the water level of the Surma in Kanaighat was 85cm above the danger level, while the Kushiyara was flowing 83cm above the danger mark at the Fenchuganj point.

Assistant Meteorologist Shah Sajib Hossain from the Sylhet met office told Dhaka Tribune that from 6am on Sunday to 9am on Monday, Sylhet logged over 104mm of rainfall over 27 hours.

Of this, 39.6mm was in the first 24 hours until 6am and another 65mm in the three hours alone from 6am to 9am on Monday.

The met office said heavy rainfall was likely in various parts of Sylhet, as well as other divisional cities across the country, over the next 72 hours, advising the public to take necessary precautions.

The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) reported 313mm of rainfall in Cherrapunji from 9am on Sunday to 9am on Monday.

BWDB sources noted that Sylhet's flood situation had been improving.

However, continuous rainfall in Sylhet and India over the past few days, combined with upstream water flow from India, had led to rising water levels in all the district's rivers since Sunday morning, continuing into Monday, they added.