Following early flooding in the northwest districts of Bangladesh in April, monsoon flood intensified in early July leading to the destruction of the rice crop in that region just before it was harvested.

Water persisted in these regions for 3 to 4 weeks whilst gradually draining southwards, severely flooding most of Central Bangladesh.

The high water level and widest extent of the flood was reached on 24 July.

The water had receded in most places by mid-August, but in mid-September, a localised depression caused continuous torrential rain and high winds over a six-day period, bringing renewed flooding to many parts of Central Bangladesh, but also flooding areas never normally flooded by the rivers, including Dhaka and other urban areas.

[3] Note: For the year 2004 average official exchange rate for BDT was 59.51 per US$.