Following notable increases in water levels brought on by persistent rain, the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA) has issued an urgent flood warning to communities along the Benue and Niger Rivers.
In a statement released on Thursday, Umar Mohammed, the director general of NIHSA, advised people living close to the riverbanks to leave since the River Benue’s water levels had reached dangerous levels.
He claimed that between October 9 and October 15, the water gauge data from important stations, including Lokoja, Umaisha, Makurdi, and Ibbi, continuously displayed high levels, above nine meters.
Critical flood-prone areas are highlighted on the map throughout Nigeria, especially in the vicinity of stations along the Benue and Niger rivers.
Mohammed issued a warning, saying, “Makurdi, in particular, has recorded dangerously high-water levels, with Lokoja and other stations also approaching flood thresholds.”
Mohammed issued a warning, saying that in order to stop floods along the Niger downstream, water discharges from the Kainji and Jebba dams are carefully monitored and regulated.
Mohammed urged people to relocate to safer regions in order to prevent the floods’ deteriorating consequences as long as it rains, and he called for complete collaboration with emergency response authorities.
The federal government has urged residents living along riverbanks to migrate after issuing warnings of coming floods in several major towns and states through various agencies.
Correspondents saw locals in Makurdi reclaiming their possessions while touring some of the impacted regions.
A Wadata resident, claimed that he and his family members attempted to save some of their personal belongings as soon as the rain began.
Normally, we don’t sleep when it rains, so when the rain started at three in the morning, we were already awake. This is why we have been having restless nights.
“We started moving some movable items, like documents and food, outside at 7 am when it became apparent to us that the rain would not stop,” he said.
According to Mr. James Iorpuu, Executive Secretary of the State Emergency Management Agency for Benue state, the organisation is ready to meet the requirements of everyone who may have been impacted by flooding.
As of this moment, the governor of Benue state, Hyacinth Alia-appointed technical committee on swift reaction to flooding is presently at the Wadata and Gaadi camps and has begun distributing food and non-food supplies to impacted victims.
Mattresses and other food items have been distributed to those impacted by the recent flooding.
“Many people in Makurdi’s Wadata and Gboko Road neighbourhoods were impacted today. As a result, we are urging everyone who resides in or near flood zones to leave right now and set up camp in order to avoid more losses,” he declared.
The government of Kogi State has appealed to the federal government and foreign relief organisations to assist the state in the wake of the flooding.
Kingsley Fanwo, the Commissioner for Information and Communications, told reporters in Kotonkarfe in the Kogi Local Government on Monday that a significant “humanitarian crisis is brewing in the state, as close to two million people are currently homeless.”
He said that because the State was already “overwhelmed,” the National Emergency Management Agency could not afford to wait any longer.
He added that around 68 IDP camps had been established and that nine of the state’s twenty-one local government units were impacted.
He bemoaned the total destruction of infrastructure, including schools, hospitals, and other facilities.
