At least two people were killed and almost 3 million left stranded after fierce flooding from monsoon rains in Bangladesh, according to a report from Reuters. According to a study from the United Nations Development Programme, our warming world is putting more people at risk of flooding events like this.
What's happening?
Bangladesh's vulnerability to disasters and climate change is reflected in its ranking as the seventh most extreme disaster-prone country in the world, according to the United Nations Development Programme. Torrential monsoon rains in late August caused flooding in the country, forcing residents to evacuate as the water damaged homes and infrastructure.
"I haven't seen so much water in the last 20 years. Everything in my house is wrecked because the water has risen to waist level," Mohammad Masum, a resident of Bangladesh's Feni district, told Reuters.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) responded to the devastation by rushing humanitarian relief to the country, where over 18 million people have been impacted by the severe monsoon conditions.
The flooding submerged nearly 770,000 acres of land, destroying over 4,000 miles of roads and over 1,000 bridges.
A report from the World Bank Institute estimated that 3.5 million people in Bangladesh are at risk of annual river flooding, which is made worse by the overheating of our planet.
Why is flooding in Bangladesh important?
Bangladesh is the eighth most populous country in the world, with more than 171 million people. A study published in the Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society says climate change quadruples flood-causing extreme monsoon rainfall events in Bangladesh and northeast India.
Bangladesh and northeast India are the most densely populated regions in the world, where severe floods as a result of extreme rainfall events kill hundreds of people and cause socioeconomic losses regularly.
India is the seventh most vulnerable country with respect to climate extremes, according to the Council on Energy, Environment and Water. That's at least another 1.4 billion people vulnerable to these extreme flooding events.
Pakistan is an example of yet another vulnerable country that has experienced extreme monsoonal rainfall. A catastrophic flood in 2022 killed more than 1,100 people and damaged over 300,000 homes.
What's being done about extreme flooding events?
The European Union has allocated more than $34 million for humanitarian assistance to Bangladesh. GlobalGiving has a list of disaster recovery projects that accept donations to help those enduring disasters.
A Spanish startup is planning to create more powerful weather models to help improve predictions of flood risks. While emerging technology is helpful, we must reduce the heat-trapping gases in our atmosphere. Riding a bike instead of driving, taking advantage of public transit options, and — if you have to drive — driving more efficiently are all ways to help.
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