At least 1 person died and 651,000 other people were displaced in Anambra state in a recent flooding incident in the state according to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).
The Acting State Coordinator of the agency in Anambra, Mr. Thickman Tanimu, confirmed the figure as well as the death of one Ginikanwa Izuoba in the Enugu-Otu, Aguleri flood while speaking to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Awka on Saturday.
Tanimu said that Izuoba died when his house collapsed due to the impact of the flood. He also said that at least 651,053 persons in six Local Government Areas of the state had so far been displaced by flooding.
According to the figures released by the agency, Ogbaru had the highest number of victims with 286,000 persons while Anambra West and East Local Government Areas (LGAs) followed with 237,000 and 103,000 victims, respectively. Awka North LGA had 10,345 victims, while Ayamelum had 9,240 flood cases with 5,468 displaced persons.
Tanimu said that NEMA, accompanied by officials of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) had visited Umueze-Anam, Mkpunando, Umunteze, Igbedo, Inoma Ifite-Ogwari in Anambra East, and Anyamelum LGAs.
The agency said its assessment team observed that the flood has submerged houses, farmlands, schools, health centers, Police Stations, Churches, and other critical infrastructure.
In September, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) reported that more than 300 people have lost their lives in flooding in the country, adding that further heavy rain and dam releases are likely to worsen the situation. NEMA had predicted more floods in 2022 than last year due to “excessive rainfalls and contributions from external flows” such as the dam in Cameroon.
The UN also reported a cholera outbreak in parts of northeast Nigeria attributed to the widespread contamination of water sources by flooding.
Climate analysts said the main cause of Nigeria’s annual flooding problem is poor infrastructural designs in areas of roads, drainage, and waste disposal.
