JOE EFFIONG, UYO
Residents of some riverine communities in Akwa Ibom State have expressed fears that the ongoing torrential rains may severe them from the rest of the state just as it has happened to the people of Mkpok in Eket LGA whose road has been washed away by the flood.
Continuous heavy rains with the accompanying floods had destroyed gutters along  the said Mkpok Road in Eket, leading to the collapse of the road, even as some other roads like All Weather, Ediam, Idua, Umana Ndon and other adjoining streets in Eket are also being threatened.
Residents of  the area especially  those along Mkpok Road have sent  Save Our Souls messages and  appealled to the state government to urgently  commence remedial work on the collapsed road to save the lives of  people in the area.
Former Chairman of Mkpok Village Council, Mr Franklin Udohuyo who lamented  the collapsed road,  described it as unfortunate saying the failed road started showing signs of deterioration about a year ago.
Udohuyo noted that prior to when the road collapsed, he informed Governor Emmanuel about the poor condition of the road, and had  advised that if not repaired, it would deter the people from voting in 2023.
“It was very pathetic the failed road started last year and nothing was done about it until recently when the whole thing collapsed.
“It is very unfortunate, if they followed the previous report, it wouldn’t have been to this level but there was negligence on the side of the state government.
“I don’t know how the contractors actually handled the job. I don’t know how the children at Mkpok Primary School will be going to school,” he lamented.
Udohuyo stated that the collapsed road has affected both businesses and mobility of people in the area, adding that it is one of the major roads accessing five villages around the area.
He revealed that the contractor commissioned by the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to construct the road failed to follow the contract specification for the work, adding that the job was done without a Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).
“The workers came and started bulldozing the whole thing. The road was  deeper below the culvert and there was no way flood water could have passed through it.
“Eventually when it started raining, flood couldn’t find its way out and the flood water had to go under the curvert, passing under it. It has been like that until recently the road collapsed,” he said.
Also speaking, Mrs Uchechi Boniface, a provision store seller along the road said she had lost so much money since the road failed on July 9.
She described the road failure as a big challenge to her business and appealed to the state government to urgently repair the road for her business to thrive.
“I am not making big sales due to the failed road. Majority of my customers live across the other side of the road. If I made sales of N100, 000 before in two weeks, now I cannot make even up to N20, 000. I have experienced big loss because of the bad road,” she said.
Speaking on the issue, National Chairman of the Nigerian Institution of Safety Engineers (NISafetyE), Mr Akaniyene Ekong said he had warned the  relevant government agency of the impending gully erosion disaster in many parts of Eket.
“NISafetyE saw it coming and notified the government when we went to the location. The first thing we did was to put physical signage on the road to alert passers-by, pedestrians and drivers in Eket.
“The problem started when canals were opened and the velocity of the volume of the water increase due to bad contractor.
“That actually washed off the embarkment and the solid layers would be washed off and eventually curved in,” he explained.
Ekong stated that the idea of opening up waterways to prevent flooding was a good intention but then, the right measures were not put in place.
He stated that the flood has destroyed houses and property worth millions of naira but no life was lost, adding that the road had caused untold hardship to the people of Eket and it’s environs.
“We can imagine the hardship pupils of the nearby school are going through because of the failed road in Mkpok axis.The road should be closed for now while remedial measures are put in place,” Ekong said.
Following the collapse of the road, Governor Udom Emmanuel approved an immediate intervention and permanent solution to the erosion problems which manifested in Mkpok area in Eket Local Government Area.
The Ministry of Environment and Solid Minerals was directed to immediately commence work at the area.
When contacted  the Commissioner of Environment and Solid Minerals, Mr Charles Udoh, said he was at the area to hand over the collapsed road to the contractor.