Unit 1: Topic 3 - Case Study 8 - Bangladesh Floodings

Question 1

When?

Answer 1

July - September 2004

Question 2

What?

Answer 2

• More than 1/2 of the country was inundating at the peak of the floods.
• 40% of Dhaka was under water
• 60% of the country was submerged
• 600 deaths
• 30 million homeless / 140 million
• 100,000 suffered diarrhoea (Mud and Raw sewage)

13 Sept - Suffered heaviest amount of rainfall in 50 years with 35cm falling.
> Death toll rose to 750
> Dhaka Airport flooded
> Roads and railways not operational
> Bridges destroyed
> $ 7 billion damage

> In rural areas, crops such rice were washed away.
Cash crops such as jute and sugar were washed away.

Question 3

Responses (Short-Term)

Answer 3

• Blankets, Medicines and Foods were being distributed. Lack of transport made this difficult
• Local communities began rebuilding homes
• International help such as UN appealed for $74 million, but received 20% of this by September
• Water Aid sought to supply water purification tablets because contaminated water was a major threat.

Question 4

Responses (Long-Term)

Answer 4

• Man-made levees built but failed
• Flood warnings and provision of flood shelters have been more successful
• People have moved to raised-land where people can temporarily move cattle.

Question 5

Why?

Answer 5

• 70% of Bangladesh is less than 1M above sea level
• Nearly half of the population is living below the poverty line.
• Snow melt from Himalayan mountains, which are linked with the Ganges river and Brahmaputra river.
• Heavy monsoons.
• No infiltration of water because the ground is already saturated so higher run-off of water.