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From Rose Ejembi, Makurdi
Despite the fact that flooding has been an annual occurrence in Benue, especially Makurdi, the state capital, residents have not got been used to the losses they incur year in, year out.
In August 2011, many houses were completely submerged in Makurdi following a downpour and the release of water from the Ladjo Dam in Cameroon.
This year, thousands of residents of Makurdi have felt the sad effects of floods, which ravaged their homes and property after last Monday’s torrential rainfall that lasted over 14 hours.
As a result of the downpour, several communities and areas in Makurdi town and its environs were submerged.
The affected areas included Wadata Rice Mill, Agber village, Wurukum Market area, Kucha Utebe and part of Judges Quarters’, along Gboko Road.
Other affected areas were Idye village, along Zone 4 Police Headquarters, part of Achusa village, Apaa Batur village, behind Living Faith Church, Naka Road, as well as BIPC Quarters, Nyiman.
The rain reportedly started at about 12:30am and flooded most areas in Makurdi, displacing many residents from their homes and destroying property worth millions of naira.
Although no life has been reported lost to the downpour, some residential buildings, schools and business areas were ravaged by the flood.
A resident of Achussa Media village, Mr. Henry Iyorkase, who was also affected by the flood, told our correspondent that the rain started gradually around 1am in his area and, not long after, it turned into a downpour accompanied with severe winds.
Iyorkase, who disclosed that the wind wrecked havoc by blowing off the roofs of many households in his area, said: “As I speak, my house is completely flooded by the rainfall.”
Another resident of Idye village, who identified himself as Mr. Joseph Wantu, said the rain started by 12.45am in his area.
“The settlement is heavily flooded. Water has submerged the major drainage and the homes here have been flooded. The rain is still falling and we cannot drive out,” he said at about 1.15pm on Monday.
Attah Ede, a resident of Agber village, said the downpour flooded every part of his new house, including his bedroom.
“Not even my fence and the drainage I made in from of my house could stop the flood from entering my premises. I watched helplessly as the rain water moved into my room and, before I knew it, we were in the middle of the flood in the dead of the night.
“I had to find a way to evacuate my family from the house that night. By the time we returned after the rain, many of my property, including electronics and paper documents, had been destroyed by the flood,” Attah said.
In Judges Quarters, a major culvert, which was constructed through community effort, was cut off, preventing residents from coming out or going in, while buildings and fences along the waterways were washed off.
Residents who spoke to our correspondent, called on the federal and state governments to find a lasting solution to the perennial floods that have continued to cause yearly havoc for them.
The Benue State government could not be reached for comments as the Commissioner for Water Resources and Environment and executive secretary for State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Mr. Dondo Ahire and Emmanuel Shior, respectively, did not answer their phones nor did they respond to text messages sent to their phones.
However, the state government had earlier warned those staying within and around flood-prone areas to relocate to safer havens, following the flood prediction by the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA).
NISHA had in July this year predicted floods in several states, including Benue, throughout this year’s rainy season.
