A flooded area

Hundreds of residential buildings were submerged and thousands of residents displaced by flood caused heavy rainfall in Jos, the Plateau capital.

A correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), who visited some of the affected areas, reports that properties and farmlands worth millions of naira were destroyed.

Alhaji Alhassan Barde, Executive Secretary, Plateau State Emergency Management Agency (SEMĄ), who also visited the affected areas, expressed concern at the level of destruction.

“The destruction is massive; we have carried out on-the-spot assessment of the situation and I can tell you that it is bad,” he told NAN on Tuesday.

He listed Rikkos and Gangere in Jos North Local Government as areas worst hit by the flood.

“Houses, vehicles and farmlands have been submerged and a mass of people displaced.

“We even went to Rayfield and specifically to a community called Yingi. The destruction there is something else,” Barde said.

He said that he would present the report on the level of damage caused by the flood to the Deputy Governor, who is the Chairman of SEMA Governing Council.

The Executive Secretary said that the situation had raised humanitarian issues which needed quick attention to avoid crisis.

He said that the SEMA had stepped up operations to rescue those that might have been trapped in various houses.

He added that a temporary camp had been established for displaced persons at Rikkos Community Primary and Secondary Schools.

“SEMA is gearing up efforts to provide foodstuffs, bedding’s, medical needs, security and other necessities at the camp,” he said.

Barde advised those residing on flood-prone areas to vacate as quickly as possible.

He said that the flood was caused by human activities and negligence.

He said that lack of proper drainage, indiscriminate disposal of waste; building and farming on flood-prone areas were the some of the human activities responsible for the flood.

Barde urged relevant government agencies like Jos Metropolitan Development Board (JMDB), Ministries of Works, Lands and Environment to activate emergency laws and compel residents to obey them. (NAN)