Yearly floods in Bangladesh

Every year Bangladesh experiences different natural disasters which severely hamper the economy and the people of this nation but still the government cannot implement the full preparation to avoid such disasters. There have been many initiatives up until now which have tried to raise awareness about the preparation before floods, but failed to do so properly.

The government does have a flood control department but none of the personnel are properly trained to face these disasters. Even though hospitals are there, no adequate staff and facilities are present to tackle the aftermath of the disaster. There are schools but no proper infrastructure or teaching mechanisms that can fully implement the drills during disaster. Disaster management is a failure as the people as well as the officials show least concern for the subject.

It is important for people to know that we cannot stop disasters from occurring but with advanced technology and skilled power, we could reduce and minimize their magnitude of destruction.

The people of Bangladesh wait for the disaster to happen rather than preparing for it beforehand. The medical and emergency services are supposed to play a big role in helping out the people in the disaster stricken areas but since most of doctors and nurses themselves are struck by the disaster, it becomes really hard for them to do their respective duties.

Chittagong is one of the port cities of Bangladesh. There is constant fear of being the first to be hit when hurricanes or cyclones or tsunamis hit our country because of the geographic location of Chittagong.

And it is one of those places where flooding occurs the most and our article is going to discuss mostly about floods. According to FEMA.gov, floods are defined as “A general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of 2 or more acres of normally dry land area or of 2 or more properties (at least 1 of which is the policyholder's property)”.

Reasons why flood occur are very clear but the site coolgeography.co.uk gives us exactly seven main reasons for floods occuring in Bangladesh:

1. Sediment dumping in the rivers of Bangladesh due to the tectonic uplift of the Himalayas
2. Monsoon rainfall
3. Deforestation in the Himalaya
4. Convergence of the three massive rivers in Bangladesh - the Ganges, the Brahmaputra and the Meghna Rivers.
5. Cyclones from the Bay of Bengal
6. Snow melting from the Himalaya caps
7. Himalayan aerographic rainfall increases rainfall totals and then river levels further.

The effects that these causes have are massive. Because of floods, everyone’s daily life activities are hampered, offices and schools remain closed as people are unable to travel because of the floods. Properties are severely damaged and livestock die. But the most severe one is death. Deaths cause of disease outbreaks and deaths cause of drowning.

When asked generally from people, their preparedness for the floods is at a minimal level. People living in high rise building are not at all bothered by the aftermath while people living in low-lying areas are in fear of dying. Even though they know that most of the time they will not be able to survive severe flooding, they still do not move from where they stay at.

Some decide to leave all their properties and valuables behind as they understand the need to evacuate. What people should do during floods, according to American Red Cross, is be prepared to evacuate at a moment’s notice, head for higher grounds, stay away from floodwater, keep children out of water and be especially cautious during the nights as it is harder to recognize flood danger at that time. They need to keep an ear out for news of disasters in their local radio or television.

The government needs to make at least one shelter home in each neighborhood especially in the disaster prone areas. These houses should be able to home many people during the time of the disaster and should include the basic necessities at the least: clean drinking water, nutritious food and proper medicines.

As people cannot move about from one place to another because of water everywhere, boats can be used as means of transportation. Medical officers can move about using these boats and moreover, at least a qualified team of doctors and medical assistants should be present at each of the shelter houses to take care of the injured and the ill.

During the time the disasters occur, people panic. The first thing we need to do is stop panicking and stay calm for the duration of the disaster, here, the flood. Only then can we survive.