Landslides, storms kill 77 in Bangladesh

CHITTAGONG: Landslides and lightning strikes have left dozens dead in Bangladesh as torrential monsoon rains pounded the disaster-prone country, officials said Monday.

At least 70 people were killed when weekend rains flooded the southeastern port city of Chittagong and set off landslides in surrounding areas. A further seven people were struck by lightning in two northern and western districts.

Chittagong police and city council officials said the landslides had buried dozens of homes in hilly districts around the city of five million, and warned the death toll could still rise.

"The situation is very grave ... it is still raining hard in the city," Chittagong police chief, Moinur Rahman Chowdhury, said.

Local government chief, Mukhlesur Rahman, said so far 70 bodies had been recovered in the port city. Most of the victims were killed by landslides.

"These are the worst ever rain-triggered landslides in Chittagong," said head of the city's fire brigade Rashedul Islam, adding that it could take at least another 24 hours to recover all the dead.

"Home after home has been buried in tonnes of mud and we still haven't reached all the affected areas yet," he said.

Thousands of troops, police and fire brigade personnel, plus civilian aid teams, had been mobilised while mosques were asked to provide shelter to those evacuating their homes, Rahman said.

Fakhruddin Ahmed, head of the country's emergency government, had sent communications minister MA Matin to the city to coordinate the relief effort.

"It's a huge task but we are trying to reach everyone," Rahman added.

Communications within the city were paralysed and telephone links with the rest of the country were down.

"One-third of the city is now under three to four feet (around a metre) of water, affecting more than 1.5 million people," said Chittagong's mayor, Manjurul Alam.

Bangladesh's meteorological office has also warned that low-lying areas in coastal districts and small islands were likely to be submerged under tidal water.

It said further heavy rains were expected all over Bangladesh during the next 24 hours.

"We have asked fishing trawlers and boats not to go to deep sea as squally weather and rains will continue for some time," the department's Sanaul Haq Mandal said.

Officials said flights to the city's Shah Amanat International Airport had been temporarily suspended and Chittagong Seaport, which handles more than 90 percent of the country's foreign trade, was also forced to close.