Bangladesh: Monsoon emergency exposes growing humanitarian needs across Cox's Bazar

 Days of relentless monsoon rainfall have triggered landslides, flash floods, and windstorms across Bangladesh, killing over 50 people and severely affecting 1.1 million others. The worst-affected areas include Rohingya refugee camps and neighbouring host communities in Cox's Bazar, where nearly one million Rohingya refugees have lived in densely populated camps for almost nine years.  

According to the Rohingya Coordination Platform (RCP), 15 refugees, including children and women, have died and 22 have been injured. Around 52,800 people have been affected, and 13,055 have been displaced. More than 4,800 residences have been partially damaged and 25 destroyed, leaving thousands of families without safe shelter. 

The floods and landslides have also led to widespread damage of water points, latrines, learning centres, retaining walls, roads and bridges, disrupting access to essential services and increasing protection risks for already vulnerable families. 

"For thousands of Rohingya families, the monsoon is no longer a normal period of the year; it has become another life-threatening emergency," said Dipankar Datta, NRC's country director in Bangladesh. "Rohingyas who fled violence now have to live with the fear that heavy rain could wash away the little safety they have rebuilt. Every year they face the same dangers, yet they remain trapped in shelters, learning centres, and water and sanitation facilities that were never designed to withstand repeated extreme weather." 

Nearly nine years after hundreds of thousands of Rohingya fled, many continue to live in densely populated camps where bamboo-and-tarpaulin shelters cling to steep hillsides. Days of intense rainfall saturate the soil, triggering landslides, flooding and widespread damage to homes and essential infrastructure. 

Md. Sayeed, a Rohingya refugee living in Camp 5, said: "When the rain became heavier, we were afraid the hill would collapse onto our shelter. Many shelters were damaged by landslides and heavy rainfall, including ours.” 

Although rainfall is expected to ease across parts of Bangladesh, the Bangladesh Meteorological Department continues to forecast heavy rainfall, particularly in Cox’s Bazar, while saturated hillsides remain highly vulnerable to further landslides.  

The emergency comes as the 2026 Joint Response Plan (JRP) faces a funding gap of more than 45 million US dollars for immediate emergency priority activities, including critical shortages in shelter, WASH, protection, education, health and food assistance. These gaps are limiting humanitarian partners' ability to strengthen preparedness, repair damaged infrastructure and provide timely support to families affected by repeated disasters. 

"This emergency shows how climate-related disasters are deepening one of the world's longest-running displacement crises. At a time of severe funding shortfalls, humanitarian organisations have fewer resources to strengthen resilience, protect vulnerable families, and help communities recover. Investing in safer and resilient infrastructures and anticipatory actions today will save lives tomorrow," said Datta. 

"No family should have to fear losing everything every time it rains. Whether they are Rohingya refugees or members of the surrounding host communities, people affected by this emergency deserve timely assistance, safer living conditions, and sustained international support to recover and build resilience." 

Humanitarian organisations are scaling up their life-saving emergency response, but without significantly increased funding, critical life-saving support will fall short of the rapidly escalating needs. 

Notes to editors: 

• Photos are available to download for free use here.
• Since 5 July 2026, heavy monsoon rainfall has affected an estimated 1.11 million people across 10 districts in Bangladesh, including more than 13,900 persons with disabilities. As of 12 July, 51 people had died, while at least 38,422 people were staying in 1,047 formal evacuation shelters. (Inter-Cluster Coordination Group)
• Flooding, landslides and waterlogging have caused widespread damage to homes and essential infrastructure. Preliminary Government reports indicate that 29,741 houses were damaged in Bandarban and Chattogram. More than 3,583 water points and 12,360 latrines have also been fully or partially damaged, disrupting access to safe water and sanitation across affected districts. (Inter-Cluster Coordination Group)
• Between 5 and 14 July 2026, 556 weather-related incidents were reported across the Rohingya refugee camps, including 301 windstorms, 189 landslides, 47 floods, five drowning incidents, and two lightning incidents. (Rohingya Coordination Platform)
• 15 refugees died, 22 were injured, around 52,858 refugees were affected, and 13,055 were displaced. (Rohingya Coordination Platform)
• 4,883 shelters were partially damaged and 25 shelters destroyed. Damage was also reported to 72 water points, 458 latrines, 64 learning centres, 1087 retaining walls, 256 pathways, 193 stairways, 18 roads and 19 bridges. (Rohingya Coordination Platform)
• The Bangladesh Meteorological Department forecasts continued heavy rainfall, particularly in Chattogram division, with saturated ground maintaining a high risk of further landslides. (Bangladesh Meteorological Department)
• The 2026 Joint Response Plan identifies an estimated US$45.2 million funding gap for immediate emergency priority activities, including US$23.2 million for Shelter-CCCM, US$9.1 million for WASH and US$4.9 million for Protection. (Rohingya Coordination Platform)
• The emergency has also affected neighbouring Bangladeshi host communities in Cox’s Bazar. Chakaria, Pekua, Ukhia, Teknaf, and Ramu upazilas are heavily affected. In coordination with local authorities and local humanitarian partners, NRC has started providing emergency assistance, distributing 2,500 dry food packages for affected families, while continuing rapid assessments and preparing additional support as needs evolve.
• In the Camps, NRC has provided 50 labour support through Cash for Work support for emergency drain cleaning in Camp 19, and provided vehicle support to truck the collected debris, while continuing rapid assessments and preparing additional support as needs evolve.
• NRC in Bangladesh is prepared to scale up its response, including slope stabilisation and rehabilitation across five Rohingya refugee camps, Cash for Work for 500 people for 20 days, Cash for Shelter assistance for 500 households, multipurpose cash assistance for 3,800 households, rehabilitation of 100 WASH facilities, and repair of 10 learning centres.