Abida Begum, a 37-year-old mother, sat weeping in the crowded ward of a children’s hospital in Dhaka, where her son aged two had been battling pneumonia for the past week. She blamed his sickness on the unbearable heat and humidity engulfing Bangladesh this season.

Begum explained that she works as an office cleaner on a low salary and had already spent 50,000 taka (around $400) on medical treatment, even while she herself was struggling to overcome a 10-day fever. “I spent all my savings and now I’m empty,” she told Climate Home.

Across Bangladesh, soaring temperatures and persistent humidity are wreaking havoc on people’s health – and their finances. As the country grapples with unprecedented heatwaves, doctors, meteorologists and residents alike are sounding the alarm about the growing toll on lives and livelihoods.

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Dr. Nihar Ranjan Das, a specialist at Alliance Hospital, confirmed the troubling trend. “Due to the intense heat, people are losing excessive amounts of water through sweating, which causes dehydration, leading to diarrhoea and other illnesses,” he said.