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Cox's Bazar, June 1, 2025 – Due to adverse weather conditions and rough seas in the Bay of Bengal, all types of boat traffic on the Teknaf-St. Martin's waterway in Cox's Bazar have been suspended for the past six days. This has directly affected the supply of daily necessities to the country's only coral island, St. Martin. There is now a severe shortage of food, fuel and medicines across the island, and the prices of whatever is left have increased dramatically. The lives of the locals have been brought to a standstill.
On the orders of the upazila administration, all types of passenger and cargo-carrying vessels were suspended on this waterway from May 25. As a result, the transport of food, medicines, fuel and other daily necessities has been completely stopped. A major problem of St. Martin's Island is that daily necessities have to be transported from Teknaf every day due to the lack of adequate warehouses here. But now that is no longer possible due to the disconnection of communication.
Residents of St. Martin say that most of their daily necessities, including raw vegetables, fuel oil, and medicines, have almost run out. Most of the shops in the market are now closed. Even in the few shops that have a few items left, prices have skyrocketed. For example, an egg is being sold for 20 taka, and a kilogram of potatoes are being bought for 100 taka. In normal days, where the prices of these things are much lower, the current situation has become a huge burden for them.
Acting Chairman of the St. Martin Union Parishad, Faizul Islam, said that the people of the island have been suffering immensely due to the closure of naval communication for six consecutive days. Along with the raw market, other consumer goods are also running out very quickly. He added that due to the lack of sunlight, solar companies are also unable to supply electricity properly. As a result, there is also a problem with the supply of electricity through generators, which has become more difficult due to the fuel shortage.
Teknaf Upazila Executive Officer (UNO) Sheikh Ehsan Uddin said that due to adverse weather conditions, local warning signal number 3 has been issued and the sea is very rough. Therefore, all types of boat traffic have been stopped until the situation normalizes. He assured that once the situation normalizes, boat traffic will resume soon and necessary steps will be taken to resolve the crisis on the island.
Usually, when the monsoon is active or the sea is rough due to low pressure, the communication between Saint Martin and the mainland is cut off. Every year, such a situation arises more or less, due to which the islanders suffer from a shortage of daily necessities. However, this time the crisis has become more prolonged, and the level of suffering has increased. This situation is a difficult test for the nearly 10,000 local residents living on the island and the tourists staying there.
