NIGERIA FLOODS AFFECT ONE MILLION PEOPLE; CROCODILES AND SNAKES WASH INTO COMMUNITIES

Wed 11 September 2024:

The collapse of a dam in northeast Nigeria has unleashed catastrophic flooding, destroying thousands of homes and intensifying an already dire humanitarian situation. Borno State’s governor announced on Wednesday that the disaster has affected over a million people, further straining the state’s resources as authorities scramble to rescue residents and provide them with temporary shelter.

Heavy rains on Tuesday caused the dam to overflow, sweeping through a state-owned zoo and sending crocodiles and snakes into nearby flood-hit communities. According to Al Jazeera’s Ahmed Idris, reporting from Maiduguri, a “stream of people” is fleeing flood-affected areas, while civilians with limited diving equipment are working to save those trapped. “We’ve seen dead bodies arriving,” Idris reported, although a rescue operation successfully saved baby twins from the floodwaters.

Local officials described this as the worst flooding the region has seen in 20 years, though the government has yet to confirm fatalities. Nigeria’s Vice President, Kashim Shettima, visited displaced victims on Tuesday, pledging food, shelter, and medical supplies. However, reports suggest that aid is slow to reach those in need.

Borno State Governor Babagana Zulum assessed the damage, noting that a quarter of Maiduguri, the state capital, was submerged, raising fears of waterborne diseases. “Sewerages were completely flooded, that means waterborne diseases would be transmitted,” Zulum warned.

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The dam collapse has added to the humanitarian crisis already affecting Borno State, a region ravaged by the Boko Haram insurgency for over a decade. The conflict has claimed over 35,000 lives and displaced 2.6 million people. Bakassi camp, a former refuge for those fleeing Boko Haram violence, was closed last year but remains heavily affected by the floods.

Since the start of the year, floods in Nigeria have claimed 229 lives. In late August, heavy rains in Jigawa, Adamawa, and Taraba states killed 49 people and displaced thousands, while the country’s worst recent flooding in 2022 claimed 600 lives.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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