18 inches rainfall swamps capital

Six electrocuted, life paralysed, millions marooned, drinking water polluted
The Monday’s overnight very heavy downpour, triggered by a monsoon low, has inundated different parts of the country mounting misery of people, especially the inhabitants of the capital city and its low-lying suburbs, putting the normal life and business in complete disarray.
At least six people died in separate incidents of electrocution in the city from Monday night to Tuesday evening.
Senior meteorologist Zahid Hossain, said a record 338 millimetres rainfall was recorded in Dhaka in the 24 hours up to 10 AM Tuesday. On the other hand, Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre has recorded 448mm of rainfall in the capital city Dhaka while Chittagong experienced 105mm, Comilla 150mm, Jessore 112mm, Patuakhali 152mm, Ramgarh 154mm, Bhairab Bazar 153mm, and Panchapukuria 105mm until 6 AM on Tuesday.
Businesses, school and office-goers got a very hard time negotiating knee to waist-deep water on the alleys and on also many main city thoroughfares. Some of the city schools suspended their scheduled classes and examinations this morning.
As water clogged at many places in the city normal life and business activities came to a total halt in many parts of it. Activities at the Bangladesh Secretariat, the administrative hub of the country, could not be started till noon as many officials and employees failed to attend their offices on time being interrupted by water clog.
The prime bourse of the country, the Dhaka Stock Exchange started trading at 11 AM, one hour later of its scheduled time. Dhaka’s commercial hub Motijheel area was totally under knee deep water disrupting business activities. Stock market officials said the water entered the ground floor of the DSE building. Most of the ground floors of buildings in Motijheel and different parts of the city were found inundated.
Boats were seen plying in some of the worst-hit areas in the morning. Bashabo, Mugda, Meradia, Maghbazaar, Mouchak, Mohammadpur, Shantinagar, Mirpur, and parts of Old Dhaka city faced the most severe water logging.
As the public transport system went out of gear, rickshaws, taxicabs and CNG-run three-wheelers braved the torrential rains and charged their passengers outrageous fares.
Thousands of commuters were stuck in traffic jams in rush morning hours on the waterlogged streets.
The worst affected areas in the city are Jatrabari, Motijheel, Mirpur, Kalyanpur, Shyamoli, Basabo, Goran, Azimpur, Dhanmondi, Minto Road, Press Club, Fakirapool, Moghbazar, Mouchak, Shantinagar, Kakrail, Uttara and the old parts of the city.
Two international flights failed to land at Zia International Airport because of overnight heavy monsoon rains. A Malaysian Airlines flight from Kuala Lumpur and a Dragon Airlines plane from Hong Kong tried to land in the first hours but failed, said Sayedul Hasan Khan, a director at Zia International Airport.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday summoned top officials of the Dhaka WASA to her office over the water-logging in the city.
WASA chairman Golam Mostofa and acting managing director Mahbubur Rahman and several others went to meet her at about 3 PM, deputy chief public information officer of WASA Afsar Uz Zaman Khan said.
The call came shortly after the water-logging issue was discussed at a meeting between deputy commissioners and the prime minister earlier in the day, he said.
Earlier state minister for local government Jahangir Kabir Nanak was at the WASA office from 9 AM to 3 PM to look after the work to resolve water-logging in the city after heavy overnight monsoon rains.
Jahangir Kabir Nanak told newsmen that WASA has deployed a total of 250 pumps to alleviate the water-logging crisis that left half the city knee-to-waist deep in floods.
Water expert Dr Ainun Nishat advised the government to clear choked canals to get rid of such water logging in the future.
He said unless those canals are cleared of encroachers or re-excavated, the natural drainage system the city used to enjoy in the past is not going to be revived any more.
Dhaka city has a very interesting topographical feature, he said.

Courtesy of The New Nation