Nearly 2 days rain flood Lagos, but not as expected

 

Nigeria flood outlook

Continuous rainfall for more than 24 hours has resulted to flooding ,which submerged many streets in parts of Lagos State, as fear raises among residents, over the occurrence of more devastating flood incidents, should the rain continues in coming days.

Correspondents went round town and found out that some areas in of Sari Iganmu , Maijidun in Ikorodu ,Lekki , among others , were the mostly affected, with the flood waters approaching the waist region of adults seen wading through them as in the case of Ekujumi street, Sari Iganmu.

In Lekki area, most of the streets have graduated to mini-rivers , big enough to accommodate canoes, while sections of the Lekki-Ajah Expressway on that axis, were also so flooded that the bonnet of some cars were covered by flood water.

Some residents at Orile, Ikorodu, Surulere and Ketu, told Radio Nigeria that  the rain which started on Saturday evening and did not stop till late in the night the following day, confined most people in their houses, and prevented them from going to church.

They said their neighborhoods were covered by pools of flood waters that also made movement difficult, even as some people were making frantic efforts to protect their property by moving them out of their flooded rooms. .

In Ajegunle and parts of Surulere, residents said they were not afraid of flood because there is much drainage to enable free flow of water and avoid flood.

However, one of the residents called on the authorities to urgently clear the blocked drains in some areas of Ajegunle to check flooding.

The Lagos State Commissioner for Environment had given the assurance that the state was prepared to manage flooding of any magnitude, and has put up measures such as clearing of blocked drains in strategic places, updating of facilities at relief camps for housing victims of flood and other emergencies.

The commissioner who said the state was planning to take the issue of environmental protection to the next level, however called on residents to cooperate with government by avoiding actions that worsen flooding, such as building on water channels and dumping refuse indiscriminately.

It will be recalled that Lagos is among cities predicted to experience flash flood, after high rainfall in the Sahel region had caused an increase in water level along the River Niger basin, which raised the fear of the repeat of 2014 devastating flood in the country.