Floods hit hundreds of thousands close to Bangladesh-India border

Hundreds of thousands of homes close to the Bangladesh-India border are underwater, and whole neighborhoods have been submerged, aid agencies said Tuesday.

At least 207 people in both countries have died since the floods began in April, according to official figures.

According to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies IFRC, some 94% of Bangladesh's Sunamganj town and 84% of the surrounding Sylhet district are now submerged due to trrential rain, the rivers in Bangladesh are densely populated delta nation to overflow, submerging areas that border the Indian state of Meghalaya. Roads leading to the region have been largely cut off and there are power cuts even in areas that are not underwater.

Save the Children said the floods had destroyed homes, schools and livelihoods, damaging at least 93,000 homes and 419 primary schools in Sylhet in May. “We have never seen this kind of flooding in our living memories in that region,” said the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society Secretary General Kazi Shofiqul Azam. Bangladesh has about 700 rivers, making it particularly vulnerable to flooding during extreme weather events. The total number of people in Bangladesh is 7.2 million, according to the IFRC. In the eastern Indian state of Assam, which neighbours Bangladesh, flooding has displaced more than 270,000 people, according to authorities. The most rainfall in parts of Meghalaya state has caused large river systems between India and Bangladesh to overflow and inundate surrounding areas. The Bangladesh Red Crescent is spending $10 million on relief and recovery operations. Volunteer teams on the ground have been helping to distribute food and drink water. The IFRC has launched an emergency appeal to raise $7.8 million, which it says could help another 300,000 people. Aid agencies say the communities hardest affected by flooding tend to be those that are already impoverished.