The flood situation in Sherpur district, particularly in the upazilas of Nalitabari, Jhenaigati, and Sreebardi, has worsened due to heavy rainfall and upstream water from India’s Meghalaya.

As the floodwaters moved downstream, new areas in these upazilas became submerged, and the lower parts of Nakla upazila were also getting affected.

So far, 122 villages across 20 unions in these four upazilas have been flooded, leaving around 60,000 people waterlogged.

Meanwhile, three people lost their lives, including a woman, as confirmed by Nalitabari Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Masud Rana.

By Saturday morning, the flood situation in Nalitabari and Jhenaigati had turned severe, with all 17 unions, including one municipality, inundated by flash floods.

Several homes have collapsed, and crops, fish ponds, livestock, and poultry have been severely affected. The flood has caused significant losses to farmers, and many roads are impassable.

Rescue operations are ongoing, with fire departments, volunteers, and the army working to help people trapped in flooded areas. Since Friday evening, the army has moved over a thousand families to safer shelters.

In a remarkable rescue, a three-month-old baby was saved by a volunteer group, Rapid Response BD, from the ceiling of a flooded house in Dighirpar village, Jhenaigati, on Friday at midnight.

The family had placed the child on the ceiling to keep them safe from rising water, which had reached chest height inside the house. The rescue team from Mymensingh saved the entire family.

The upazila administrations declared all schools in Jhenaigati and Nalitabari as emergency shelters, and control rooms have been set up to coordinate relief efforts. Fresh water and dry food were being distributed to flood victims. Speedboats, life jackets, and other equipment have been arranged to assist in rescue operations.

According to the Water Development Board’s Executive Engineer, Md Nakibuzzaman Khan, the Bhogai and Chellakhali rivers in Nalitabari were flowing above the danger level on Saturday morning. Riverbanks and embankments in Nalitabari and Jhenaigati were damaged by upstream water, and emergency efforts were being made to prevent further erosion.

Meanwhile, the Bangladesh Meteorological Department predicted heavy to very heavy rainfall in Dhaka, Mymensingh, Barishal, Chattogram, and Sylhet divisions over the next 24 hours, with the possibility of landslides in the hilly areas of Chattogram due to the heavy rain.