A marathon rainfall which started on
Sunday night and thundered on uninterrupted till Monday evening has disrupted business activities in some communities in Lagos State, Nigeria's commercial city and another areas in Niger State , a Northern part of the country
Viral videos showed submerged houses and vehicles in Ijede in the Ikorodu area of Lagos including Coastal and flood-prone areas like Lekki, parts of Eti-Osa, Ajegunle, Agege, Surulere, and Alimosho local governments where residents delicately navigated pool-like streets and roads, which overflowed from clogged drainage channels and canals.
Residents took to their social media handles to cry for help as the ugly situation paralysed trade and economic activities in the nation’s commercial hub
Movement was also hampered as motorists avoided flooded roads to avoid their vehicles from being submerged
Similarly, floods submerged some communities in Niger State after heavy rainfall poured on communities and washed away farmlands in the Lapai, Paikoro and Mokwa Local Government Areas of the state.
It will recalled similarly situation was witnessed last week, during flood submerged communities in eight communities in Adamawa State, in Nigeria’s North-East geopolitical zone.
Responding, the Lagos State Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab in a statement on Monday, acknowledged the pain of Lagosians with an assurance that the state has put in place resilient infrastructure to combat flash flooding.
According to the commissioner, a new weather advisory from the Nigerian Meteorological Agency on Monday warned of heavy rainfall and thunderstorms for the next three days.
He said, “Some parts of the state may experience flash flooding because of the inability of the major collectors not being able to contain the run-off resulting from the very heavy rainfalls.”
He stressed that the peculiar nature of Lagos as a coastal city and the effect of climate change make it susceptible to vagaries of flash flooding, asking residents not to panic.
Wahab urged parents and guardians to exercise vigilance over their wards during the holiday period and cautioned against children playing outside during this delicate period.
He warned residents not to engage in disposing of their refuse into the drains as the rains fall, warning that there are consequences for such acts and the refuse will end up blocking the drains and causing flash floods.
Wahab said the state would intensify the year-round cleaning and maintenance of all drainage channels to contain runoff from rainfalls.
No comments:
Post a Comment