Five Killed as Landslides Hit Bandarban’s Lama Amid Heavy Rain

Five people including a four-year-old child were killed in two separate landslides in the Mission Para area of Lama, Bandarban, early Thursday morning. The tragedies, triggered by heavy rainfall, buried two families while they slept.

The first landslide occurred around 2:00 am in Aziznagar Union, claiming the lives of Md Jewel, 28, and his wife Kulsuma Begum, 22. Approximately two hours later, a second hillside collapsed nearby, killing Md Yunus, 28, his wife Ranu Begum, 22, and their young son, Solaiman.

Rescue operations were conducted by a Fire Service team from Chunati, Lohagara, as the site was more accessible to them than the Lama-based units. Local officials noted that while the region suffered major landslides in 2009 and 2016, this is the first time such an event has occurred in the Mission Para neighborhood.

Emergency coordination faced severe challenges due to a total power outage that began Wednesday night. The outage knocked out the Teletalk network across Lama upazila, leaving officials and rescuers unable to communicate effectively.

As of 10:00 am Thursday, light rain continues to fall in the area. Local authorities have expressed concern for other families living on steep slopes, as the risk of further collapses remains high.