Dam breaks in Dakope
Khulna Correspondent :
At least four villages have been flooded after a dam broke due to intense tidal pressure in Dakope, Khulna around 11:30 pm on Tuesday as the water pressure of the Dhaki River increased. As a result, a 200-foot WAPDA embankment in the Batbunia Harisava Mandir area of ??Tildanga Union under Polder No. 30 of Dakope Upazila washed away, submerging a wide area.
In this incident, Uttar Kaminibasia, Batbunia, Nishankhali and Arakkhali villages of Tildanga Union were flooded. Many houses, fish ponds and ponds were washed away by the rush of water. Aman crops of about 3,000 bighas of land were destroyed. It would be wrong to call this incident just a local accident. This is a deep warning about the safety and future of the coast of Bangladesh. Will the southern region really be flooded and become uninhabitable before 2050? This is the question that has arisen in the minds of coastal residents.
Locals of Batbunia village complain that the embankment next to the market collapses instantly during high tide. They said that the place was already risky and although there have been demands for the construction of a permanent embankment for a long time, it has not been implemented. As a result, the locals have to face such suffering again and again. If the Water Development Board had buried it with at least two sand tubes on Wednesday morning, the situation could have been handled. But they failed to do so.
Although field-level officials of the board were present at the scene, no high-level officials were seen, said Jalal Uddin Gazi, chairman of Tildanga Union Parishad. He believes that if the embankment is not repaired quickly, there is a risk that the entire union, including Dakshin Kaminibasia, Bhadlabunia, Moshamari, Garkhali and Kankarabunia, will be flooded.
Executive Engineer of the Water Development Board Md. AshrafulAlam said that geo tubes were previously installed in the collapsed part of the dam, but it weakened over time. The dam collapsed over an area of ??about 25 meters due to the excess water pressure during Tuesday night’s high tide. However, the repair work has already started and he expressed hope that the dam will be repaired soon.
Dakop Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Asmat Hossain said that the upazila administration has immediately distributed dry and cooking food items including chira, jaggery, rice, pulses, oil among the affected 40 families. We hope to be able to block the dam by night.
He also said that the Water Development Board is taking all kinds of initiatives. The necessary sand tubes and other equipment have been kept ready. In addition, hasty repairs are now underway – as if it is an old scene that has been seen again and again. Landslides, damage, and then temporary solutions are temporary solution. But where is the permanent solution?
The fragile embankments of the locality are sometimes over flowing to maintain the course, sometimes wreaking havoc, displacing people from the coastal areas.