Bangladesh A Country Under Water

Floods ravage a "basket case," leaving a quarter of the population homeless and raising fears of epidemics and starvation

"I don't know why God should punish us like this," sighed the weary President of Bangladesh, Hussain Mohammed Ershad, as he looked out a helicopter window at the devastation below. Even by the standards of his perennially destitute country, the punishment this time seemed inordinately cruel. As much as three-quarters of Bangladesh -- a country the size of Wisconsin crowded with 110 million people -- lay under water after it and neighboring India, Bhutan and Nepal were pelted by what may have been the heaviest monsoon rains in 70 years. An estimated 30 million Bangladeshis were left homeless. Many hundreds perished,...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!