File photo: A flooded area

The Kano State Emergency Relief and Rehabilitation Agency (SERERA) said three persons lost their lives as a result of flood in the state in 2016.

The Executive Secretary of the agency, Alhaji Aliyu Bashir, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kano on Friday.

NAN reports that the figure contradicts the earlier one given by the Northwest zone of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) which put the number of deaths at 18.

He said out of the three people, two died in Bebeji local government area of the state, while the remaining one lost his life in Kiru local government area.

Bashir said no fewer than 3, 500 houses were destroyed by flood between July and August, while food and cash crops worth millions of Naira were washed away by the flood during the period.

He said the nine local government areas were ravaged by flood this year including: Bebeji, Dawakin Kudu, Kiru, Shanono, Bagwai, Garun-Malam, Kano Municipal, Bichi and Takai.

According to him, officials of the agency had since visited all the affected areas with a view to assessing the damage caused by the disaster.

He explained that the agency would compile a comprehensive report on the disaster for onward submission to the state government and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) for necessary assistance to the victims.

The executive secretary disclosed that the state government had recently released N2.9 million for the disbursement to victims of flood disaster in Warawa local government area of the state.

Bashir said the government had to immediately assist the flood victims in Warawa because of the magnitude of the disaster.(NAN)