Bangladeshi rivers break their banks, 400,000 forced to evacuate

Rain-swollen rivers in Bangladesh broke through at least four embankments, submerging dozens of villages, Reuters reports. The number of people fleeing their homes overnight doubled to 400,000 in one of the worst floods in recent years, officials said on Friday.

Heavy rains and overflowing rivers have swamped 23 districts in northern and northwestern Bangladesh. At least 30 people have been killed since the floods began last week, authorities say.

The government has opened more than 1,000 temporary shelters. However, due to deep waters and lack of communications, many people aren’t able to reach them, said Raihana Islam, an official in the flood-afflicted district of Bogra.

The floods worsened after three embankments on the Brahmaputra river, which flows down from the Himalayas, through northeastern India and into Bangladesh, gave way late on Thursday.