Today marks 34 years since one of the deadliest natural disasters in Bangladesh’s history. On April 29, 1991, a catastrophic cyclone and tidal surge struck the coastal regions of Chattogram and Cox’s Bazar with devastating force, killing an estimated 138,000 people and leaving more than 10 million others destitute. The day remains etched in the collective memory of the coastal population, many of whom still grieve the loss of their loved ones.
The cyclone hit with winds reaching up to 250 km/h and tidal waves as high as six meters (about 20 feet), sweeping across areas like Sandwip, Banshkhali, Anwara, Maheshkhali, and Kutubdia. Over one million homes were destroyed, and entire villages were submerged. In Sandwip alone, around 23,000 people were killed, according to unofficial figures. A severe food crisis followed in the aftermath.
Then-Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia rushed to the devastated areas to oversee relief efforts. Despite the decades that have passed, families who lost relatives continue to mourn on this day every year, offering prayers, and recalling the tragic night when the sea swallowed entire communities.
A personal story of loss and survival
Mohammad Solaiman, now the Officer-in-Charge of Panchlaish Police Station in Chattogram and a recent nominee for the prestigious “IG Badge” award, used this day to remember his sister Firoza, who saved his life during the cyclone but was herself lost to the tidal waves. In a moving Facebook post, he recounted the terrifying night on a small island near Maheshkhali when rising waters forced them onto the tin roof of a house.
“When the water reached our courtyard, we climbed onto a tin roof to escape. My sister helped me onto a tree from that roof—she physically lifted me up. But I couldn’t pull her up after me,” he wrote. “Today, even in my happiest moments, her absence brings sorrow. May all my good deeds be a means for your peace in Jannah, my sister.”
Eyewitness testimonies still haunt
Former forest officer Selim Khan, who was stationed in Urir Char at the time, also took to social media to describe his experience. “By midnight, water had entered our office. People, animals, houses—everything was being swept away. When morning came, we saw nothing but bodies—humans, livestock, scattered everywhere,” he wrote. He recalled carrying an injured boy back to his family, only to learn he was the son of a local village doctor.
He later journeyed to Sandwip on a storm-battered trawler, witnessing widespread devastation: “No roads, no houses, no shops. Dead bodies were everywhere. In my own village pond, I saw the bodies of children from a neighbor’s family. I personally helped bury many of them.”
‘Still unsafe, still vulnerable’
Dr. Nurun Nahar, a teacher at Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology and a native of Sandwip, expressed frustration that the coastal areas remain just as vulnerable even after 34 years. “The trauma of April 29, 1991, never fades for the people here. Each family lost multiple members. Many didn’t even get to bury their dead. And to this day, we fear every storm. Promises of safety exist only on paper,” she said.
As Bangladesh reflects on one of its darkest days, survivors and descendants urge greater investment in sustainable cyclone defenses, embankments, and public awareness to prevent such large-scale tragedies from recurring.
