11 Killed in two days in landslides in Cox's Bazar
A housewife has died in another landslide triggered by continuous heavy rainfall in Cox's Bazar, bringing the death toll from landslides in the district over the past two days to 11.
The latest incident occurred around 1:00 pm on Tuesday (July 7) in the Barochhara area of Dariyanagar under Jhilongja Union in Cox's Bazar Sadar Upazila.
The incident was confirmed by Cox's Bazar Sadar Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Tahmina Akter.
The deceased was identified as Nasima Akter, 27, wife of Jasim Uddin, 40, a resident of Barochhara in Dariyanagar. Her husband and one of their children sustained serious injuries in the incident.
According to the Fire Service and local sources, a section of a hill collapsed onto their house following hours of heavy rain, trapping Nasima, her husband, and their child under the debris. Local residents and Fire Service personnel launched an immediate rescue operation and recovered all three victims before rushing them to Cox's Bazar Sadar Hospital, where doctors declared Nasima dead. The injured father and child are currently receiving treatment.
UNO Tahmina Akter said the administration had repeatedly warned residents living in landslide-prone areas through public announcements to evacuate to safer locations before the heavy rains. However, many ignored the warnings, resulting in the latest tragedy.
She added that eviction drives and relocation efforts, led by executive magistrates, would begin Tuesday afternoon to remove residents from high-risk areas and shift them to safe shelters.
Meanwhile, Md. Abdul Hannan, Assistant Meteorologist at the Cox's Bazar Weather Office, said 47 millimetres of rainfall had been recorded in the district between 6:00 am and 3:00 pm on Tuesday. He warned that rainfall is likely to continue over the next several days. Although Chattogram was the main centre of rainfall on Tuesday, significant precipitation was also recorded in coastal areas, including Kutubdia and Chakaria.
On Sunday night (July 5), separate landslides caused by incessant rainfall killed 10 people, including women and children, at Rohingya camps 7, 11, and 15 in Ukhiya and in the Chattarghona area of Cox's Bazar town. Eight of the victims were Rohingya refugees. Earlier that same day, a seven-year-old child was killed in Pekua Upazila after the wall of a house collapsed following a landslide.
With continuous rainfall persisting across the district, fresh fears of more landslides have emerged in the hilly and vulnerable areas of Cox's Bazar. Authorities have urged residents living in high-risk zones to move immediately to designated shelters for their safety.