“Water came into my house and took away many things”

Heavy rains in northeastern India and neighboring Bangladesh have caused flooding and landslides, with the death toll in Bangladesh rising to 20, local officials said Sunday, after 23 people were reported dead in the Indian state of Tripura.

More than 400,000 people in Bangladesh have taken shelter in about 3,500 shelters in 11 flood-hit districts. In total, more than 5.2 million people in Bangladesh have been affected by the floods. In India, more than 65,000 people have been forced to leave their homes.

Floodwaters have left many people isolated and without food, clean water, medicines and dry clothing, especially in remote areas where blocked roads have hampered rescue and relief efforts.

Hundreds of homes were flooded, and some residents sought shelter by fleeing to rooftops. Many farm animals died, there was extensive damage to buildings and infrastructure, and large losses were reported in agriculture.

– The water broke into my house and took away many things, including clothes and documents – said one of the affected residents.

As another man who had to evacuate with his family reported, “everything is destroyed, everything is gone. The water was up to our necks.”

Former top government adviser Muhammad Yunus said in a televised address that the administration had taken all necessary measures to ensure a speedy return to normalcy for those affected. Yunus, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, leads a caretaker government that was sworn in after former Prime Minister Hasina Wazed fled the country following student riots earlier this month. Some Bangladeshis say the floods were caused by the opening of sluices in neighboring India. New Delhi has dismissed that suggestion.

Over the past few days, parts of Tripura state and eastern Bangladesh have received heavy rainfall of nearly 200 litres per square metre.

Home to more than 170 million people and with hundreds of rivers running through it, Bangladesh is often hit by devastating floods, making it one of the countries most vulnerable to natural disasters caused by climate change.