Dhaka battles deluge after heavy rainfall

Heavy rainfall on Thursday brought much of Dhaka to a standstill—a strain that continued into Friday—as severe waterlogging once again exposed the capital's fragile drainage system and unplanned urban development.

The city recorded 196mm of rainfall in 24 hours, submerging key areas such as Mirpur, Mohammadpur, Dhanmondi, Palton, Mohakhali, Uttara, and Motijheel under one to three feet of water.

Thousands of office-goers were stranded for hours, with many forced to abandon their vehicles.

Urban experts have attributed the crisis to multiple factors, including the collapse of the drainage network, illegal encroachment and waste-clogging of canals, malfunctioning pumping stations, shrinking wetlands, and the increasing spread of concrete-covered surfaces.

On Thursday evening, Ikbal Hossain left his office at 7pm but did not reach his home in Pallabi, Mirpur until midnight.

"I spent half of the night on the road. It took me two and a half hours to reach Kazipara by car. Then water entered the engine, and I had to tow it home. There was waist-deep water on the road," he told The Business Standard.

Reports of waterlogging were received from most areas of the capital, including Matikata, Kazipara, Shewrapara, Kawla, Abdullahpur, Bangshal, New Market, Sayedabad, and Jatrabari.

Although the rainfall eased on Friday, with only light drizzles, waterlogging persisted in several neighbourhoods such as Dhanmondi, Mirpur, New Market, and Palton.

Even on the weekend, many residents who stepped out for essential errands faced similar difficulties.

Public transport was limited, and those who found rickshaws or auto-rickshaws often had to pay inflated fares. Some people waded through knee-deep water to reach their destinations.

Footpath vendors were also affected. Most roadside shops remained closed, while open stalls reported no sales.

"Every year, New Market gets submerged after heavy rainfall, but the city corporation takes no serious steps to solve this," said Liakot Ali, a New Market trader.

"Our goods are getting damaged, and there are no customers. We had losses even before Eid—now the pressure is unbearable."

In Kalshi Balur Math slum in Mirpur, water submerged the area during Thursday's rainfall, forcing hundreds of residents to take shelter under the nearby flyover.

"We have been here since 11pm Thursday. The water came up to the bed. I had to bring my whole family out. All our furniture got wet," said Jannat, a resident.

"I work as a domestic helper and live hand-to-mouth. Now it seems we will have to go without food and stay drenched in the rain," she added.

Meanwhile, in response to waterlogging, the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives has set up an emergency control room at the Department of Public Health Engineering's Kakrail office.

The control room, coordinated by representatives from both Dhaka North and South city corporations and the Local Government Division, began receiving complaints on Friday.

By 9pm Friday, 19 complaints were logged from Dhaka South and 42 from Dhaka North. Officials said most of the complaints had already been addressed, while work on the remaining cases was in progress.

Mohammad Ejaz, administrator of Dhaka North City Corporation, said, "Due to our prior preparation, we were able to resolve most waterlogging issues quickly. To improve future responses, I have directed the supervising engineer (drainage) to identify hotspots using GIS mapping based on this rainfall.