The unloading of imported liquefied natural gas at a floating regasification unit in the Bay of Bengal was suspended on Wednesday as the sea remained rough with an intensifying low, prompting flash flood warnings for parts of Bangladesh.
Authorities said that the cargo vessel with LNG supplies had to anchor far away due to big waves and heavy wind.
On Wednesday, the overall gas supply dropped to 2,600 mmcfd as LNG supply fell to 729 mmcfd, with Petrobangla predicting further fall in the supply to 650 mmcfd, potentially worsening the ongoing energy crisis.
鈥榃e have to wait until the bad weather is over to get more LNG,鈥� said Petrobangla director Rafiqul Islam.
Hours before the suspension of the LNG unloading, the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre issued flash flood warnings for northern, north-eastern and eastern Bangladesh.
As rains are likely in Bangladesh and its adjacent upstream areas over the next five days, the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre said in a bulletin issued on Wednesday that the Mohuri, Teesta, Jadukata, Manu, Khowai and Someswari rivers might overflow their danger marks at some places on May 30 and 31.
Rivers, such as Halda, Gomti, Sangu, Matamuhuri, Dharla, Dudhkumar, Sarigowain, Manu, Dhalai, Bhogai and Jinjiram might also rapidly swell over the next five days.
All four maritime ports have been put under signal number three because of rough sea with all fishing boats and trawlers advised to remain close to the coast and proceed with caution until further notice.
Over the next 48 hours, according to a special heavy rainfall warning by the Bangladesh Meteorological Department issued at 2:00pm on Wednesday, heavy to very heavy rainfall is likely in five divisions of Dhaka, Khulna, Barishal, Chattogram and Sylhet.
Continued rainfall might trigger landslides in Chattogram, Rangamati, Khagrachari, Bandarban and Cox鈥檚 Bazar districts during the time of the warning, the BMD said.
In the 24 hours until 6:00pm on Wednesday, the BMD said, Bangladesh鈥檚 highest rainfall of 61mm was recorded in Teknaf.
The India Meteorological Department issued red warning for vast swathes of land in the states of Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Mizoram, Tripura, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh for today and tomorrow.
Red is the highest warning issued by the IMD, implying that actions need to be taken for protection from the imminent disaster.
The low pressure became well-marked on Wednesday with chances of further intensifying before moving onto land today.
