Heavy rainfall: Boy dies, residents groan, commuters stranded as flood wreaks havoc in Lagos

 

IBRAHIM QUADRI

Heavy downpour that lasted for several hours on Wednesday resulted in the death of a minor while a building collapsed at 10, Cameroon Street in Mushin area of Lagos.

 

The downpour left some communities submerged by flood which also affected commuting as many stranded along the roads in Lagos metropolis.

 

Motorists had to spend hours on the road coming through Alapere to the Third Mainland Bridge.

 

The minor was feared dead  when the building collapsed. Seven other residents were also reportedly rescued by sympathisers from the rubbles.

 

In a video seen on social media, the Iyana-Iworo, Olopo Meji area leading to the 3rd Mainland Bridge underwater was hit by flood.

 

The flood rendered the road almost impassable causing gridlock for commuters.

 

An X user who tweets as #JayNaijaTv shared a video of the flooded area with the caption, “Iyana-Oworo, Olopo meji area heading to 3rd Mainland Bridge this morning is completely flooded, causing long traffic that extends to Alapere.”

 

Daily Champion learnt that there was flooding in various parts of the city, including Ibeju-Lekki, Ketu, Oshodi, Epe, Sangotedo, and Awoyaya, others.

 

Some residents attributed the flooding to the blocked waterways due to indiscriminate dumping of waste in the localities.

 

The rain also caused a tree to fall around Airport U-turn in Oshodi.

 

Personnel of the Lagos State Traffic Management Agency (LASTMA) were on hand to clear the fallen tree from the road to facilitate traffic flow and ensure public safety.

 

The Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NiMet) had predicted thunderstorm and rains from Wednesday to Friday across the country.

 

NiMet`s weather outlook released on Tuesday in Abuja predicted morning thunderstorms on Wednesday over parts of Jigawa, Kano, Katsina, Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara, Taraba and Adamawa states.

 

“While afternoon/evening thunderstorms are expected over parts of Adamawa, Taraba, Jigawa, Kaduna, Yobe, Bauchi and Gombe states.

 

“Thunderstorms are expected over parts of the Federal Capital Territory, Kwara, Kogi, Plateau, Benue and Niger states in the North Central in the morning.“

 

In his reaction, the State Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Mr Tokunbo Wahab, attributed the flooding around Olopo Meji inward 3rd Mainland to the intense and prolonged rainfall, combined with a high tidal level in the lagoon.

 

Tokunbo made this known on X.com on Wednesday. He assured the public that the situation is temporary and will subside within 1-2 hours.

 

He added that as the tidal level recedes, the rainwater will be able to discharge into the lagoon, alleviating the flooding.

 

The statement said, “The Olopo Meji inward 3rd Mainland situation is a flash flood that is due to the high intensity of the rain, long duration rain coupled with high tidal lagoon level at the moment.

 

“Be rest assured it would go away in about 1-2hours. As the high tidal level of the lagoon goes down, the rain/storm water will be able to discharge into the lagoon.

 

In a subsequent update, Wahab disclosed that a team from the Lagos State Ministry of Environment and Water Resources, EFAG, had been deployed to monitor and clear the flash flood.

 

He wrote, “The EFAG team from the Lagos State Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources #LasgMOE were deployed to monitor/clear the flash flood at the Olopomeji section of Iyana Oworo. The road is now free from rain water. Thank you for your patience and understanding.”

.Residents lament movement restriction, crippled activities

Also, Some Lagos residents have lamented restricted movement and crippled activities due to the flooding witnessed in the state following persistent rainfall.

The residents spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Lagos, following the early morning rains that resulted in floods in some parts of the state.

Mr Gideon Adarugo, a resident at Abule-Osun, Ojo area of the state, said that floods have overrun drainage in the area.

“Everywhere is flooded, we have been evacuating water from our premises since the rain started.

“If the rain continues in the next two hours, our gutters will overrun and we do not know what to do. It is a swampy area but we have not had it this bad in recent times.

“We hope the water stops rising as soon as the rain stops,” Adarugo said.

Mrs Temitope Babalola, a resident at Lambe street at Egbeda area of the state, said the flood has grounded activities in the area as school pupils were advised to stay back home.

“The flood is massive in our area, even last week, the water seeped into our home. We had to bail it out. It is a complete shutdown for us as the children are unable to go to school due to persistent rain of today and the consequent flooding of the entire street.

“Some private school authorities in the neighbourhood called parents to keep their wards back home due to the floods.

“Vehicles are unable to navigate their way through the flood, we are all indoors hoping the rains will stop falling soon.

“Jimoh bus stop, Akowonjo area and Shasha axis are currently flooded, even for vehicular movements,” Babalola said.

On her part, Ms Tina Otibho, a resident at Gbagada area,  said the flood stopped her and other road commuters from going to work.

“The Gbagada/Oworonshoki expressway is currently flooded and we cannot access the third mainland bridge to the island.

“The canals in the area are over flooded and are seeping into the houses in the area.

“We just hope the rain does not persist, or else we will all be grounded for a while,” Otibho said.

A resident at Ojo barracks, Mrs Glory Micheal, said “the whole area has been flooded since the rain commenced.

“The whole neighbourhood is currently flooded since the rain began in the early hours of the day. We have been scooping water out of our houses to keep the flood out.

“We hope the rain does not persist or else we may be at the brink of losing properties to the flood.

“The drainage in the area are overflowing and with the torrent of the rain, we may experience this flood for some days,” Michael said.

Also, Mr Collins Ani, a trader at the popular GL market at Trade Fair, said that flood at Underbrigde bus stop has doubled in size.

“Our customers are finding it hard to access the market due to the flood at the bus stop.

“It has been hectic day and vehicular movement is difficult to navigate into the market due to the flood and bad roads.

“We hope the rain does not continue like this, or we would not be able to enjoy sales as usual,” Ani added.

Another resident, Mrs Lara Ashaolu, said the flood was quite minimal at Ayobo compared to the ones they experienced earlier in the year.

Ashaolu, however, said that some streets in area were completely flooded as residents could not go about their usual activities.

 

Lagos calls for calm as state experiences over 9hrs rainfall

 

The Lagos State Government on Wednesday called for calm over the flash flood caused by the torrential rainfall experienced throughout the state.

The  Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Mr Tokunbo Wahab, made the plea in a statement on Wednesday in Lagos.

“Lagos has experienced about nine hours of non-stop rainfall since the early hours of Wednesday.

“This is coupled with the heavy rainfall which the state has been experiencing on a daily basis since the previous week resulting in the rise in level of the Lagos lagoon,” Wahab said.

He said the flash floods which inundated areas such as Iyana-Oworo linking the Third Mainland and several other areas would recede once the rains abate and the level of the lagoon reduces.

The commissioner added that the state had deployed officials of the Emergency Flood Abatement Gang to major black spots including Iyana-Oworo which had been cleared of all blockages.

He urged all those in low lying areas to as a matter of necessity relocate to higher grounds at this period to safeguard lives and properties.

He urged residents to desist from wading through floods with their vehicles as it takes only a feet of flowing water with high tide to sweep away a vehicle irrespective of the number of occupants.

Wahab also urged all residents to avail themselves of daily weather reports as issued by the State Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources as it serves as a guide to daily itinerary.

He noted that Lagos is a coastal city with almost one third of its landmass under water, as such necessitating a genuine reason for every resident to be more responsive to the state of the environment.

He reiterated that the government on its part has embarked upon a year long maintenance and cleaning of all its secondary and primary collectors to be able to contain runoffs that may come from heavy rainfalls.

“Residents on their parts are expected to regularly clean and maintain the tertiary drains in front of their tenements and refrain from dumping refuse in the drains for the collective good of everyone,” he said.

.Community participation critical to flood disaster mitigation, says NEMA

 

However, The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) on Wednesday said that community participation was critical to mitigating flooding in the country.

Mrs Zubaida Umar, Director-General, NEMA, said this at the beginning of the 2024 Flood Early Warnings Sensitisation Programme in Awka.

The consultation and sensitisation programme was organised in collaboration with the Anambra State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA).

Umar, therefore, called on community and opinion leaders, women and youths to support proactive measures to mitigate flooding during the rainy season.

She said that the rainfall and flood advisories contained in the 2024 seasonal climate prediction and annual flood outlook stated that Anambra fell under the 31 states at risk of high and moderate flood.

She said that there was the need for collaboration to safeguard communities at risk, protect critical infrastructure and support uninterrupted socio-economic activities in Anambra.

“In the recent past, lives have been lost, means of livelihood and infrastructure amounting to billions of Naira have been destroyed by floods.

“The devastating impacts of flood over the years especially that of 2012 and 2022 have served as a wake-up call and the reason for this early warning alerts.

“Management of disaster is hinged on community participation, leaving no one behind. We are expected to take actions that will drastically reduce the adverse impacts of flood.

“Public and private institutions, humanitarian and non-governmental organisations are expected to leverage on these early warnings to support the efforts of government institutions,” she said.

Also speaking, Gov. Chukwuma Soludo said erosion and flooding which had become an existential threat to the state, required the intervention of the Federal Government.

Soludo represented by his Deputy, Dr Onyekachi Ibezim, said the government had develop a work plan to mitigate the impact of flooding in the state.

“We thank NEMA for picking Anambra state for the flag-off of this year’s flood early warning sensitisation.

“On the short term, the state government has commenced infrastructural interventions such as expansion and desilting of drains as well as terminating drains into the streams.

“The state government is prepared for the emergencies and ready to work with NEMA to reduce the impacts of the annually recurring floods to safeguard the lives and property of the people,” he said.

In his remarks, Igwe Pius Omachonu of Olumbanasa in Anambra West, urged the government to prioritise post disaster interventions to support survivors and help them resettle.

“During the 2022 flood disaster, after leaving the displaced persons camps, we did not get any form of counselling, palliative or relief. We beg the government not to allow such happen again, ” he said.

Also, Chief Paul Odenigbo, the Executive Secretary, SEMA, said Ayamelum, Anambra East, Anambra West and Ogbaru, were the high flood risk areas out of the 10 identified local government areas.

Odenigbo urged people living near the river and streams to start relocating to higher grounds as soon as they notice significant rise in the water level.

He also said the state government had intensified awareness in flood prone communities and had activated 27 holding centres to accommodate persons that might be displaced during the impending flood disaster.