Experts call the record-breaking floods 'unprecedented, but not unpredictable', with millions inundated just as climate talks in Germany end on a disappointing note
Devastating floods in Bangladesh have displaced millions of people and left vast swathes of land inundated, with state officials in the hardest-hit Sylhet district calling it the worst flooding in over one hundred years.
Experts say the disaster hitting Bangladesh and northeastern India, in which at least 59 people have died so far, is a timely reminder of the damage already being wrought by extreme weather events exacerbated by the climate crisis.
Enamur Rahman, Bangladesh's junior minister for disaster and relief, said on Monday that hundreds of thousands of people have been evacuated in the Sunamganj and Sylhet districts, and about four million people have been marooned in the area, the United News of Bangladesh agency reported.
People in the northeastern region have been entirely cut off from the rest of the country by failed communication lines. Schools have been converted into makeshift shelters and on Friday, the army was deployed to help people reach these facilities. Even so, there are many reports of emergency workers struggling to reach those affected.
Officials are warning that the country is facing a massive humanitarian crisis, following severe flooding earlier this year that left millions of people displaced.