EU provides €2 mn to victims of tropical storm Roanu in BD

The European Commission is providing € 2 million or Tk 174 million in humanitarian aid funding to deliver relief assistance to population affected by tropical storm Roanu.

Roanu was the first storm to strike Bangladesh this year as the country prepares for the annual monsoon season, which normally begins in June and ends in September.

It has left more than 430 000 people in need of humanitarian assistance as it caused widespread losses and destruction in large parts of the country last month.

‘This EU contribution underlines our commitment to the people of Bangladesh who have lost their homes, their belongings and their sources of income in the wake of Tropical Storm Roanu,’ said Christos Stylianides, the EU Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management.

The EU Commissioner said it will enable the delivery of lifesaving humanitarian aid to the most-affected population, helping them restore their livelihoods at the earliest possible.

The results of a recent coordinated needs assessment indicated that close to 24 000 homes were flattened by the storm, while more than 215 000 people are displaced in seven worst-hit districts of Barguna, Bhola, Chittagong, Cox Bazar, Lakshmipur, Noakhali and Pathukhali.

The EU funding allocated for Bangladesh is part of a larger regional humanitarian response to tropical storm Roanu which also covers Sri Lanka, reports United News of Bangladesh.

Tropical Storm Roanu made landfall in Bangladesh’s southern coastal division of Chittagong on May 21.

At least 27 people were killed, while the strong winds, tidal surges and heavy downpours triggered a series of landslides and flashfloods, leaving a number of villages and crop fields inundated, particularly those in low-lying areas.