Heavy overnight rainfall has caused severe waterlogging in several parts of Chittagong city, disrupting traffic and causing widespread suffering for office-goers, pedestrians and students. Rain continued through on Monday morning, worsening the situation.
Jamal Khan, Chawkbazar, Katalganj in Panchlaish, Fulchhari Para in Patenga, the Agrabad Commerce College area, Muradpur and GEC were among the worst-affected areas. In some locations, water rose from knee to waist level, severely disrupting vehicular movement. Pedestrians and school and college students were forced to wade through stagnant water to reach their destinations.
Nur Uddin, a resident of Jamal Khan, said knee- to waist-deep water had accumulated in the area following the overnight rain, causing severe hardship for local residents and commuters.
Ismail Mia, a forecasting officer at the Patenga Meteorological Office, said 189 millimetres of rainfall was recorded in Chittagong in the 24 hours up to 9am on Monday. Of the total, 109mm was recorded between 6am and 9am alone.
He said a low-pressure system had formed over the northwest Bay of Bengal and adjoining coastal areas. Under its influence, strong winds were sweeping across the sea ports, the northern Bay of Bengal and adjoining coastal areas of Bangladesh.
The authorities have advised Chittagong, Cox’s Bazar, Mongla and Payra seaports to keep local warning signal No. 3 hoisted due to the adverse weather conditions.