July could see normal flooding

With heavy rainfall earlier last week, the Brahmaputra in spate upstream in Assam and to some extent downstream in Kurigram, the Ganges showing signs of rise this week and the prospect of little rain this month, the question arises whether there will be another bout of flooding across the northern plains. Already there have been flash floods in the hills of the south-east region, particularly in Bandarbans, but that did not last long. As soon as the rain stopped, the flash floods were gone.
But the floods along the northern plains refused to go until the overflowing Brahmaputra and its channels began to shrink downstream this week. With the Brahmaputra slowing down upstream and the Assam floods waning a bit, the Brahmaputra-Jamuna, the Padma and the Surma-Kushiyara rivers in Bangladesh in falling trend, the Ganges was showing signs of restlessness yesterday (Wednesday), officials of the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC) said.
It now depends on the rain in the coming days and in the upstream areas if the Brahmaputra would maintain its falling trend, along with other  rivers like the Surmna-Kushiyara, the officials, Ripon Karmaker and Sajjad Hossain, said. They, however, noted that the Ganges was likely to continue rising in the next 48 hours. Ripon said if both the Brahmaputra and Ganges go in spate and overflow their banks, it may spell danger for Bangladesh and there could be a repeat of 1998. But all this is conjecture, he added.
A long-range forecast by the Bangladesh Meteorological Department for July said the month may have little more rain over its normal average against the backdrop of a mean performance of monsoon in June, when the rainfall was 29 per cent less than the average. The forecast also said the country’s north and north-west areas may have their normal share of flooding.

July could see normal flooding

With heavy rainfall earlier last week, the Brahmaputra in spate upstream in Assam and to some extent downstream in Kurigram, the Ganges showing signs of rise this week and the prospect of little rain this month, the question arises whether there will be another bout of flooding across the northern plains. Already there have been flash floods in the hills of the south-east region, particularly in Bandarbans, but that did not last long. As soon as the rain stopped, the flash floods were gone. But the floods along the northern plains refused to go until the overflowing Brahmaputra and its channels began to shrink downstream this week. With the Brahmaputra slowing down upstream and the Assam floods waning a bit, the Brahmaputra-Jamuna, the Padma and the Surma-Kushiyara rivers in Bangladesh in falling trend, the Ganges was showing signs of restlessness yesterday (Wednesday), officials of the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC) said. It now depends on the rain in the coming days and in the upstream areas if the Brahmaputra would maintain its falling trend, along with other rivers like the Surmna-Kushiyara, the officials, Ripon Karmaker and Sajjad Hossain, said. They, however, noted that the Ganges was likely to continue rising in the next 48 hours. Ripon said if both the Brahmaputra and Ganges go in spate and overflow their banks, it may spell danger for Bangladesh and there could be a repeat of 1998. But all this is conjecture, he added. A long-range forecast by the Bangladesh Meteorological Department for July said the month may have little more rain over its normal average against the backdrop of a mean performance of monsoon in June, when the rainfall was 29 per cent less than the average. The forecast also said the countrys north and north-west areas may have their normal share of flooding.