Dhaka – Some 3.41 lakh farmers were affected in four districts of Sylhet division as over 1.13 lakh hectares of boro paddy in haors of Sunamganj, Sylhet, Moulvibazar and Habiganj have gone under water following flashflood caused by heavy rainfall…
Category: Disasters
Floods never kill fishes or birds: No more hasty remarks
by Mostafa Kamal Majumder Dhaka – The deaths of fishes that breed and grow, and water birds that feed and roost in the haors (depressions) of greater Sylhet region on the northeastern part of Bangladesh, following a flash flood just…
4 years of Rana Plaza tragedy: 42pc survivors still jobless
Dhaka, Apr 22 – Some 57.6 percent survivors of Rana Plaza collapse are engaged in various types of wage and self-employments, while 42.4 percent claimed that they are jobless, shows a recent survey.
What caused fish, bird deaths in Sunamganj haor waters
Dhaka, Apr 22 – Nearly 50 tonnes of fish have died so far in several haors (water bodies) of Sunmaganj district as the oxygen level in the water fell due to formation of ammonia gas, said the Ministry of Fisheries…
Middle East, engulfed by a ‘perfect storm’
By Baher Kamal Rome, Apr 21 (IPS) – A perfect storm has engulfed the Middle East, and continues to threaten international peace and security. Hardly anyone could sum up the Middle East explosive situation in so few, blunt words as…
Heavy rain submerges parts of Ctg city
Chittagong – Heavy rain submerged many streets of the port city on Friday, leaving the normal life in disarray. UNB news agency reported
Dinajpur boiler blast death toll rises to 4
Dhaka, Apr 21 (UNB) – Another worker who sustained burn injuries in a boiler explosion at a rice mill at Gopalganj in Sadar upazila of Dinajpur district on Wednesday died at Rangpur Medical College Hospital on Friday, raising the death…
NGOs launch relief for flood victims
BRAC will carry out month-long emergency relief activities to help the people in the haor (low-lying wetland) area hit by flashfloods, resulting from continuous rainfall for about three weeks now. Under the initiative worth Tk 15 crore, BRAC will support…
Early floods bring disaster to agriculturem in BD Northeast
The government will take steps for arranging alterative jobs for the recent flashflood victims in haor areas alongside providing them with food support. Disaster Management and Relief Minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya came up with the announcement while exchanging views…
BRAC launches emergency relief effort for haor people
Dhaka – BRAC will carry out month-long emergency relief activities to help the people in the haor (low-lying wetland) area hit by flashfloods, resulting from continuous rainfall for about three weeks now. UNB news agency reported
Siblings among 6 killed by lightning in 3 districts
Dhaka – Six people, including two siblings, were killed in separate lightning strikes in Noakhali, Barisal and Sirajganj districts from Wednesday night to Thursday morning. UNB news agency reported
More mudslides in Colombia kill at least 17 people
Bogota, Apr 20 (AP/UNB) — A deluge of rain set off landslides that smashed homes and filled streets with mud Wednesday in a mountain city in a coffee-growing part of Colombia, and authorities said at least 17 people were killed…
Cuban sweet symbol of post hurricane challenge to agriculture
Early in the day, when a gentle dew moistens the ground and vegetation in the mountains of eastern Cuba, street vendor Raulises Ramírez sets up his rustic stand next to the La Farola highway and displays his cone-shaped coconut sweets.…
Cyclonic storm crosses Myanmar coast: Ports lower signals
Dhaka, Apr 17 – The cyclonic storm ‘Maarutha’ formed over the east-central bay off Myanmar coast moved slightly northeastwards further and crossed the coast near Sandoway early Monday.
Dozens feared deaf after chemical exposure in Syria
Dozens of people showed symptoms consistent with exposure to chemicals after aircraft attacked Khan Sheikhoun, a town in northern Syria, witnesses told us. While we are continuing to investigate, early reports suggest dozens were killed. Khan Sheikhoun is controlled by…
Strengthening Kenya’s resilience to disaster
By Miriam Gathigah Nairobi, Apr 7 (IPS) – Kenya’s lack of capacity to cope with wide-scale disaster has seen thousands of households continue to live precarious lives, especially in light of erratic and drastically changing weather patterns. If millions are…
As deluges threaten crops, Bangladesh’s hill farmers shift tactics
For a long time, slash and burn agriculture was a way of life for Funghkal Bawn. Like other farmers from the ethnic Bawn community, in the Chittagong Hill Tract area of Bangladesh, he used to clear a new strip of…
Int’l confce on disaster management held at JU
Anas Uddin Ovi Savar, Dhaka – Focusing on disaster management through geospatial technologies, a day-long international conference, organized by ‘Institute of Remote Sensing (IRS)’ of Jahangirangar University (JU), for the first time held on the campus on Monday.
4 missing as yet another trawler sinks in Northeast BD
Sunamganj, Apr 4 – Four people went missing as a trawler, carrying around 50 people, capsized in Tanguar Haor under Tahirpur upazila on Tuesday morning.
193 dead after rivers overflow, toppling homes in Colombia
Bogota, Apr 2 (AP/UNB) — An avalanche of water from three overflowing rivers tore through a small city in Colombia while people slept, destroying homes, sweeping away cars and killing at least 193 unsuspecting residents. The incident triggered by a…
JU ‘Geospatial Apps in Disaster Management’ int’l confce April 3
Anas Uddin Ovi Savar, Dhaka – The Institute of Remote Sensing (IRS) of Jahangirangar University (JU) is going to organize an international conference on ‘Geospatial Applications in Disaster Management’ on AprilApril 3 at JU Senate hall here on the campus.
Death toll in Bagerhat trawler capsize rises to 17
Dhaka, Mar 31 – The death toll in Tuesday’s trawler capsize in the Panguchi River in Morelganj upazila of Bagerhat rose to 17 as three more bodies were recovered from the river on Friday.
Death toll in Bagerhat trawler capsize 12
Dhaka, Mar 30 – The bodies of seven more people, who had gone missing after a trawler capsized in the Panguchi River in Morrelganj upazila of Bagerhat on Tuesday morning, were recovered from the river on Thursday, raising the death…
‘Monster’ storm Cyclone Debbie hits Australia
A powerful cyclone carrying winds of up to 263km/h (163 mph) has made landfall in Queensland, Australia. Cyclone Debbie, a category four storm, has left at least 45,000 homes without power and damaged buildings, although it is too early to…
Cyclone hits Australian islands lifting roofs, cutting power
Dhaka — A powerful cyclone lashed islands, damaged roofs and cut power on Tuesday as it edged toward Australia’s tropical northeast coast, officials said.Category 4 cyclone Debbie brought winds gusting to 250 kilometers per hour (155 miles per hour) and…
Bangladesh: Population movement emergency appeal launched
This Emergency Appeal is being launched on a preliminary basis and seeks a total of 3,265,766 Swiss francs to enable the IFRC to support the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society (BDRCS) to deliver assistance and support to some 25,000 people for…
Next refugee crisis will be caused by environmental disasters
The next big migration wave won’t be caused by war or hunger. It will be caused by environmental disasters. People will be fleeing cities and countries to escape environmental pollution that makes life short, sick, and unbearable. The global consequences…
Death toll rises to 72 in Peru rains, flooding, mudslides
Lima, Mar 19 (AP/UNB) — The intense rains, overflowing rivers, mudslides and flooding being experienced in the country are the worst seen in two decades, Peruvian authorities said Saturday, affecting more than half the nation as the death toll since…
Flights scrapped, schools closed as strom hits New York
New York, Mar 14 (AP/UNB) — A powerful nor’easter is beginning to lash the mid-Atlantic and the Northeast prompting flight cancellations, school closures and warnings from New York city and state officials to stay off the roads.
The ocean is swallowing these two American towns
To stay or to go. It’s a wrenching question low-lying coastal communities around the world are beginning to reckon with as climate change starts to push up global sea levels. But it’s not just happening in far-away places like Bangladesh…