Wiped out by river and memory
The most serious cyclone in Bangladesh’s recent history, Remal, struck the coast two months back. But less media attention means lesser funds are available to help people get back on their feet.
Soon after elderly Jamina Khatun reached the cyclone centre near her home along the estuary of Baleshwar and Kochar rivers (in Chandipur Union of Indurkani Upazila in Pirojpur), she somehow slipped and lost consciousness. The centre was crowded, as Cyclone Remal hit the coast, and everyone from the riverside hurried there.
"I don't know what happened afterwards. And when the water receded, I returned, but everything was gone. My house was destroyed, and all my belongings were lost," Jamina told The Business Standard on a rainy day, standing on her destroyed toilet pan in front of scattered tins that used to be her house.
It had been over a month since the cyclone had hit the coast, but her house had not been rebuilt.
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"My toilet has been destroyed. I am going to other people's toilets. I live with my mentally challenged son and beg for food from others," Jamina's cataract-eyes were clouded in uncertainty.
There was a 'semi-WAPDA embankment' (an earthen embankment) protecting the locals from inundation near Jamina's house; however, the entire embankment was washed away and eliminated during Cyclone Remal, resulting in the destruction of Jamina's house and hundreds of others in the area.
The most serious cyclone in Bangladesh's recent history, Remal, struck the coast on May 26. It affected 46 lakh people across 19 districts, resulting in 16 deaths.
The disaster necessitated the evacuation of 8,07,023 people and caused damage to 1,72,866 houses.
Additionally, 80,591 hectares of cultivable land were inundated, 1,34,269 sanitation facilities were damaged, and 34,000 ponds were washed away. Furthermore, 50,000 fishing farms were destroyed, and 4,000 crab farms were flooded.
High damage, little assistance
Chandipur is one of the villages in south-western Bangladesh where the cyclone impacted the most, damaging and destroying around 600-700 houses in two wards of the union we visited, according to ward-4 member Mijanur Rahman.
"The embankment is gone, peoples' houses are damaged. No one has their toilets intact," Mijanur said.
"We had 'semi-WAPDA embankment here. After it was demolished in Cyclone Sidr, it was rebuilt again. Now it has entirely vanished. We need 'full WAPDA embankment' now, the ones made with pilings," he said.
Md Ibrahim, a fisherman along the Kochar River bank said although no life was lost in Remal, their means of livelihood was lost.
"I lost my properties, fishing nets, etc," Ibrahim said. "But we haven't received any assistance from the government," he added.
Many others, like Ibrahim and Jamina in these villages, shared with TBS that apart from emergency help during the cyclone from some NGOs like the Red Crescent, they didn't receive any assistance to rebuild their life and livelihood after the cyclone, in the recovery phase.
"These people are in dire need of assistance but they didn't get any help," said Dodol, husband of the Ward-3 member who was patrolling the villages.
A housewife named Hawa Begum told us that their house was badly damaged while she and her family took shelter in the cyclone centre. Now, they don't have the means to repair or rebuild their house.
"My house and the river are now one," Hawa told us, pointing to the river, which was now exposed directly a few dozen metres from her house after the barrage was destroyed.
Less media attention, less funds
Camilla Bruun Simonsen, Communications Coordinator for IFRC Bangladesh's Cyclone Remal interventions, who is originally from Danish Red Cross, recently visited the areas severely impacted by the cyclone.
Camilla felt that Remal had received very little attention in the global media, limiting the scope for organisations in attracting enough donations in their disaster response operations.
"People's homes have been destroyed, and their belongings swept away in the inundation. BDRC/IFRC has been trying to raise funds, but it is very difficult to fundraise because there has been so little attention to the disaster," Camilla told TBS.
"I think it is unfortunate that it happened at a time when other things were capturing media attention in general. So, there was almost no international media coverage. And that makes it much more difficult to fundraise because attention from donors correlates with their willingness to support," she added.
When asked if she thought donors were less interested in engaging nowadays or if it was due to the lesser media focus, she replied, "Mostly because it was not in the focus. There is also something about the recurrence of floods and extreme weather in this region. But the strange thing is that Cyclone Remal has been much stronger than cyclones in recent years."
"I mean, the last comparable one was Aila in 2009, and yet, it didn't receive a lot of attention. It is a little strange, but sometimes it is not entirely logical how attention works," she added. "What I saw and what I felt was there is a very big need for more support."
Volunteers working in the affected areas said they have been distributing food assistance and tarpaulins, which many are using as roofs, but these are short-term fixes. They emphasised the need for a plan to focus more on livelihood support, as well as water, sanitation, and hygiene assistance.
I mean, the last comparable one was Aila in 2009, and yet, it didn't receive a lot of attention. It is a little strange, but sometimes it is not entirely logical how attention works," she added. "What I saw and what I felt was there is a very big need for more support.
Fresh water is also a major crisis in the area as fisherman Abul Hussain mentioned. He said that tube well water stinks; it is saline and undrinkable. Besides, women cannot use it for bathing as it causes their hair to get tangled.
"I spent around Tk20,000 to take water from the river through pipes, which we boil and then drink. We are entirely dependent on river water for drinking, cooking and washing."
But most cannot afford the money to spend on water. As a result, they continue to suffer from the water crisis.
Cyclone after cyclone, but they never abandon their homes
Abdul Hakim, an elderly fisherman, took shelter in a concrete house in his locality with his wife and cows. His dilapidated house somehow survived the inundation but its foundation was gone and badly battered.
His widowed daughter named Dalia with her son – whose house was entirely destroyed – took shelter at his place.
"I don't know if I will ever be able to rebuild my house again," Dalia said. Her husband passed away only six months ago from a heart attack.
Hakim's niece Abdul Kader from Char Baleshwar – whose house was also destroyed – came to him to seek food.
"I have five members in my family. We are living in a tarpaulin shade. I am a poor fisherman. I don't know how to rebuild my house," Kader said.
Abdul Hakim's aged face and eyes were battered and tired.
His sons live in towns where they work.
"All the soil under my house washed away. We don't know what to eat, our toilet too is destroyed," Hakim said.
Why do you live here alone? We asked. Why don't you two migrate to town with your sons?
Hakim became silent for a moment.
"The grave of my parents is gone in the river. This is what is left of my parents. Why would I leave my parents' house?" Hakim, the fisherman, replied to us, with his tired eyes travelling back decades in the past.
If Hakim was a poet, he would perhaps have articulated it better, like Somali Poet Warsan Shire said, "no one leaves home unless home is the mouth of a shark…no one leaves home unless home chases you, fire under feet, hot blood in your belly… no one leaves home until home is a sweaty voice in your ear saying- leave, run away from me now, I don't know what I have become but I know that anywhere is safer than here."
