Desperate Bangladeshi Families Lose Their Homes To River Erosion

Desperate people were photographed carrying parts of their dismantled homes during the disaster on September 2.

The families have now been forced to look for shelter elsewhere, with some staying with friends or in rented properties.

Erosion is endemic in Bangladesh with millions affected as farmland, crops, and villages are destroyed.

A report from the Centre for Environmental and Geographic Information Service reports the country's three main rivers could erode around 2,695 hectares of land this year.

If that were to occur, it would leave an estimated 26,940 people displaced.

Amena Begum, 60, is one of the people who lost her home on Tuesday.

She said: "Since 1970 I am living here with many lands but now I am landless, we are like refugees now."

Roughly 32 per cent of Bangladesh is on the coast and around 28 per cent of the population live there.

The country's three main rivers are the Padma, Ganges, and Jamuna.

When they enter their mature stage they flow over wide valleys and plains, and erosion is caused when the rivers meander and braid.

Momtaj, 20, from the Dohar district, said: "I have two acres of land and a house but now I have lost it all and I am living in someone else's house."