Millions displaced as floods continue to inundate one-third of Bangladesh

Louhajang, Bangladesh: About one-third of Bangladesh has been inundated by floods with local media reporting on Wednesday that millions of people were displaced and 161 people had died in floods which started more than a month ago.

In the village of Louhajang, about 55 km (34 miles) from the capital Dhaka, local residents displaced by floods received relief materials, with some rowing small boats across floodwaters to access the collection points. Sandbags were placed along the riverbank at Shimulia ferry terminal after Padma River overflowed and caused erosion. Residents were forced to travel by boat and had to move their cattle to higher grounds to avoid the flooding.

The agriculture ministry said that the longest-running floods in over two decades in Bangladesh have submerged nearly 80,000 hectares of paddy fields. he floods also complicated the efforts to fight the novel coronavirus. Bangladesh has reported 266,498 COVID-19 infections with 3,513 deaths as of Thursday.