Flood kills 11, sacks 529 communities in Niger

Heavy rainfall has caused widespread flooding in Niger State, resulting in the loss of 11 lives and impacting 529 communities across 19 local governments.

The affected areas include Mokwa, Katcha Lavun, Lapai, Agaie, Shiroro, Munya, Gbako, Kontagora, Bosso, Edati, Agwara Magama, Bida, Mashegu, Borgu Gurara, Suleja, and Rijau.

The floods have also washed away hectares of farmlands, potentially triggering a food crisis in the state and country. Director General of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency, Abdullahi Baba Aarah, confirmed the devastating occurrence and assured that the state government is taking decisive measures to prevent further disasters.

This year’s flooding in West Africa has been particularly severe, with over 460,000 people displaced across the region. In Nigeria, the Borno State flooding has claimed at least 30 lives and displaced over 400,000 people.

Disclosing this on Thursday, Director General, Niger State Emergency Management Agency, Abdullahi Baba Aarah said the state government has taken more decisive steps to guide against further reoccurrence.

“We are still expecting more rains and therefore, flooding may still be with us and this is why we are not letting down our guards.

“Sadly, we have lost 11 people to the flood, 5 in Mokwa local government area, 2 each in Shiroro and Munya and 1 each in Katcha and Rijau local government areas.

“In addition, 246 school infrastructure have been washed away, creating accommodation problems for pupils and students and their teachers.

“We can also report that as of September, this year, 18 bridges and 80 culverts have been destroyed by floods, causing communication problems for people in the affected areas

“With this development, the state may also be facing serious food shortages because the flood has affected 118692 hectares of farmlands, some of which had crops ready for harvests while over I,600 fish ponds were also washed away,” the Director General declared.