Jamuna devours Bogura spur 

The Jamuna river broke through the Shahrabari spur in Bogura’s Dhunat upazila on Wednesday, swallowing around 65 metres of the embankment and sending riverside families scrambling to dismantle their homes and flee to safer ground.

The collapse in Bhandarbari union, came as falling water levels in the Jamuna triggered whirlpools that battered the embankment. The same spur had already lost 50 metres on 12 July.

Jamuna’s water fell 15cm in the past 24 hours and is now flowing 86cm below danger level, the Water Development Board (WDB) said. WDB Executive Engineer Mahmud Hasan blamed four factors for the collapse: the rapid fall in water level, a shift in current direction, whirlpool formation, and the river narrowing sharply near Shahrabari after widening upstream. Geo-bags were laid from Wednesday to check further erosion.

Meanwhile, flood situation in low-lying areas along the Kushiyara river in Sylhet is likely to improve over the next two days, the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC) said in its latest bulletin on Wednesday.

Kushiyara at Fenchuganj remains the only point still flowing above danger level. Water levels in the Surma-Kushiyara system fell over the past 24 hours and may continue falling for another day before stabilising for two days.

A deep depression over north Odisha has shifted west to north Odisha and south Jharkhand, and is expected to weaken gradually.

Brahmaputra-Jamuna water levels also fell over the past 24 hours and may fall further for three days before rising slightly, staying below danger level throughout. The Ganges remained stable while the Padma fell marginally.

In Chattogram division, the Matamuhuri river rose, while the Gumti, Muhuri, Feni, Selonia, Halda and Sangu rivers all fell.