Following the flooding that has displaced over 70% of Borno State this week, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu expressed concerns and directed his Vice and Borno’s former governor, Kashim Shettima, to visit the affected state. The President also ordered the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to assist and evacuate the flood victims. Tinubu promised to take care of their well-being.
Vice President Shettima pledged, while on his emergency visit to Borno, that the federal government will face the flooding challenge with a new solution strategy. He also promised that the government would support them with fifty trucks of rice, although the public has reacted with outrage.
The flood began last weekend and has lasted over four days, worsened by heavy rainfall, after the Alau Dam overflowed. It was reported that the dam suffered a spillway collapse, causing a heavy surge of water that led to widespread flooding in some parts of the state.
The flooding has displaced Maiduguri and its surrounding communities, including Chibok, Biu, Konduga, Bama, Dikwa, and Jere, which are reportedly underwater. Strategic areas such as the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital, the Shehu of Borno Palace and Monday Market, and the Maiduguri Central Market have also been affected. Although the state has not identified the number of casualties, it has declared public and private schools closed for two weeks.
Also, an alarm has been raised about more than 200 inmates who escaped from the Maiduguri Correctional Facility after a part of its fence was brought down by the flood. The spokesperson for the Nigerian Correctional Service Borno Command, Bala Adamu, confirmed the jailbreak and stated that they’re “still assessing the number of inmates who escaped.” He also noted that they’ve recaptured only three escapees so far.
The state’s zoo isn’t left out. The flood has left about 80% of the animals in Sanda Kyari Zoo lifeless. Residents have reported that the flood has washed up wild animals like crocodiles and snakes in residential areas. In a general statement, the zoo’s general manager, Ali Abatcha, warned residents to take necessary precautions to avoid the wild animals.
Despite providing an evacuation route for affected residents to follow for safe passage, hundreds of displaced people and families fill the streets of Borno State. The livelihoods of affected residents and business owners have taken a hit. They’re left without businesses to open and cater to. In response to this terrible flood disaster, three Internally Displaced People Camps (IDP Camps) have been opened in the state to take in victims.
This is a developing story.
