Forecast of 200-500mm rain in 3 days puts Ctg at high landslide risk, anticipatory action underway

Chattogram and four other southeastern districts are expected to receive between 200mm and 500mm of rainfall over the next three days, raising the risk of landslides and flash floods and prompting the government and humanitarian agencies to intensify preparedness efforts.

At least 30 people have been killed in separate landslide incidents across the five districts over the past five days. 

According to a special landslide warning bulletin jointly issued by the Regional Integrated Multi-Hazard Early Warning System (RIMES) and the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD), Chattogram, Cox's Bazar, Bandarban, Rangamati and Khagrachhari are likely to experience heavy to very heavy rainfall from 10 to 12 July due to an active monsoon over the Bay of Bengal and a well-marked low-pressure system over northwest Madhya Pradesh and adjoining areas in India.

The bulletin identifies all five districts as high-risk zones for landslides. Chattogram recorded the highest rainfall among the affected districts in the 24 hours until 6pm on 9 July, with 223mm, followed by Teknaf with 169mm, Rangamati with 106mm and Cox's Bazar with 89mm. 

Ismail Hossain, a forecast officer at the Patenga Weather Office, told The Business Standard, "Chattogram recorded 118.8mm of rainfall in the 24 hours until 6pm on 10 July. Heavy to very heavy rainfall is likely to continue until 12 July. Rainfall intensity is expected to decrease from 13 July onward."

Meanwhile, Disaster Management and Relief Minister Asadul Habib Dulu told Parliament yesterday that 30 people have died in recent floods and landslides triggered by heavy rainfall in five districts under Chattogram Division.

Speaking under Section 300 of the Rules of Procedure, he said 19 people died in Cox's Bazar, five in Chattogram, five in Bandarban and one in Rangamati.

The minister said the government is giving the highest priority to protecting affected people and meeting their immediate humanitarian needs.

According to him, the government has opened 1,057 shelters across the five districts, including 41 in Chattogram, 640 in Cox's Bazar, 21 in Rangamati, 135 in Khagrachhari and 220 in Bandarban.

He said 8,340 people have taken shelter in Chattogram, while 126 are staying in shelters in Rangamati, 1,755 in Khagrachhari and 2,173 in Bandarban. 

Operations remain ongoing as the government, Save the Children and partner organisations continue supporting communities amid persistent heavy rainfall and elevated landslide risks.

Following the activation of heavy rainfall-induced landslide and flash flood anticipatory action triggers, Save the Children and its partners, in coordination with the government, have stepped up preparedness measures across Chattogram and the Chattogram Hill Tracts under the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO)-funded SURAKKHA project.

Fatema Meherunnessa, manager for resilience and anticipatory action at Save the Children, said that as of 10 July, 580,489 voice-based early warning messages had been disseminated in collaboration with RIMES and the BMD to support timely preparedness for landslides and flash floods across Chattogram, Cox's Bazar, Bandarban, Rangamati and Khagrachhari.

She said the warnings were delivered through existing institutional coordination mechanisms, allowing authorities to reach at-risk communities beyond the project's immediate intervention areas.

In addition, more than 90,000 people received life-saving early warning information through a multi-channel communication system involving Disaster Management Committees, MET Clubs, schools, learning labs, religious institutions, interpreter pools, the Fire Service and Civil Defence, as well as miking, door-to-door campaigns and local media.

To help vulnerable families prepare before the forecast impacts, 300 households received Tk6,000 each in unconditional anticipatory cash assistance through mobile money transfers and cash-in-hand distribution in Naikhongchhari, Lama, Rangamati, Chattogram City Corporation and Banshkhali. The assistance enabled families to purchase emergency supplies, secure household assets and protect their livelihoods ahead of the expected heavy rainfall.

Authorities have also evacuated 746 households from high-risk areas, including 486 households in Chattogram and Banshkhali and 260 households across the Chattogram Hill Tracts. Disaster Management Committees continue to support local preparedness by repairing roads and houses, cleaning drainage systems, ensuring the safe storage of food and medicines, relocating livestock and strengthening community readiness.

The government has opened around 350 emergency shelters across Chattogram and the Chattogram Hill Tracts to facilitate evacuations as heavy rainfall continues.

However, response operations are facing mounting challenges. Flooded roads, landslides and damaged bridges have cut off access to several affected areas, particularly in the Chattogram Hill Tracts, delaying damage assessments and humanitarian assistance. Continuous rainfall, rising river levels and disruptions to road and river transport have also complicated evacuation efforts in remote communities.

Power outages and mobile network disruptions in several upazilas have limited communication with affected communities, while ongoing rainfall and the threat of further landslides continue to pose safety risks for both residents and emergency responders. Humanitarian agencies said access constraints and communication disruptions are delaying rapid needs assessments, while transport disruptions are slowing the movement of relief supplies and personnel to remote hill areas.