Several areas in the Gulshan and Baridhara districts in the north of the capital, where most foreign diplomatic missions and residences are located, were knee-deep in water which flowed across roads, lawns and upmarket homes, witnesses said. In some areas, residents used boats and rickshaws to get about. The British, French, Japanese and Thai Embassies were among those affected, with their approach roads under water.

The floods have left 30 million people homeless and destroyed vast tracts of agricultural land. Fresh rains were predicted in the worst-hit Central Bangladesh, including the Capital Dhaka, where three swollen rivers continued to rise.