3,500 people homeless as storm hits Ctg

Over 600 houses were completely damaged leaving some 3,500 people shelterless and crops on some 1,300 hectares of land were damaged in the cyclonic storm that lashed coastal areas of Chittagong on Thursday night.

The storm also damaged two power plants and snapped supply lines creating a power crisis in a vast region including the port city. In Sandwip upazila, around 500 houses were damaged fully with about 3,000 people rendered homeless and about 500 houses were damaged partially affecting some 6,000 people in 14 unions, according to reports received here.

Moreover, standing crops on about 750 hectares were damaged completely and those on some 400 hectares partially as the offshore island went under a tidal surge 10 to 15 feet higher than usual under the impact of the cyclone.

In Anowara upazila, some 160 houses were damaged affecting around 250 families and crops on about 100 hectares were damaged in four unions. The tidal surge damaged 30 km of roads completely and 40 km partially in the upazila.

About 130 houses were damaged partially in Banshkhali and Satkania and 30 houses in Sitakunda, affecting more than 1,000 people.

The district administration took measures to provide relief and rehabilitate the affected people, said Deputy Commissioner Ashraf Shamim.

Assistant Commissioner Khondakar Nurul Haq said Tk 1 lakh 70 thousand, 35 tonnes of rice and 55 bundles of corrugated iron sheets were given to the affected. The storm damaged Unit - 2 of Rauzan power plant and Shikalbaha thermal power plant . With Unit-1 of the 420 MW Raozan plant remaining tripped for the last two weeks, power generation stopped at the plant.

The power outage hampered production in 350 garments factories in different industrial zones like Nasirabad, Kalurghat and Sagarika, said BGMEA Vice-president MA Salam.

Production was also hampered in about 40 industrial units at Chittagong Export Processing Zone (CEPZ), said CEPZ General Manager Ataul Haq. Around 15 fishing vessels went missing in coastal Anowara area.

Meanwhile, activities at Chittagong port resumed at 8:00am and operations at Shah Amanat International Airport resumed at 2:00pm yesterday.