Flood submerges Lagos, disrupts business activities

By Lukman Olabiyi and Browne Chimezie

The torrential rainfall, which began at about 3am and continued for over eight hours, yesterday, left several Lagos residents, commuters, and workers groaning and gnashing their teeth as a large part of the metropolis was flooded and the roads rendered impassable.

As a result, several commuters were stranded, while business and economic activities were paralysed.

During the downpour,  a two-storey building collapsed at 12 Cameroun Street in the Ewenla area of Mushin, leaving a baby dead while several others were injured.

Dr. Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, permanent secretary of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), confirmed that the collapsed building was newly constructed.

He stated that seven people, comprising three females and four males, were rescued and taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.

From the Mainland to the Island, commuters struggled to wade through waterlogged streets, and economic activities were significantly disrupted.

A post shared by Chu Osakwe, on his X handle said: “This is Gbagada to 7-up inward Third Mainland Bridge. Stay home if you have no business on the island.”

Another user, admonished: “If your route this morning is (Lagos) Mainland to (Lagos) Island via Third Mainland Bridge, just forget it. Turn back home or reroute. The beginning of the Third Mainland is car door height flooded. I’ve never seen that on the bridge before.”

Many residents lamented that the situation led to a hike in transport fare. It has become a common occurrence during the rainy season in Lagos, and it leads to disruptions in transportation, businesses, and daily activities.

Reacting, Lagos State Government called for calm over the flash flood caused by the torrential rainfall experienced throughout the state.

“Lagos has experienced about nine hours of non-stop rainfall since the early hours of Wednesday.

“This is coupled with the heavy rainfall, which the state has been experiencing on a daily basis since the previous week resulting in the rise in level of the Lagos lagoon,” Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, said in a statement.

He said the flash floods, which inundated areas such as Iyana-Oworo linking the Third Mainland, and several other areas, would recede once the rains abate and the level of the lagoon reduces.

The commissioner added that the state had deployed officials of the Emergency Flood Abatement Gang to major black spots, including Iyana-Oworo, which had been cleared of all blockages.

He urged all those in low lying areas to, as a matter of necessity, relocate to higher grounds at this period to safeguard lives and property. He urged residents to desist from wading through floods with their vehicles as it takes only a foot of flowing water with high tide to sweep away a vehicle irrespective of the number of occupants.

Mr. Oluwaseun Olatunbosun, resident in Alimosho, who works in Ikeja area, said there was always a hike in fare anytime it rains.

“If there is no rain, I spend like N1,000 from my house around Orisunbare to Ikeja, where my office is, but I spend well over N1,000 during the rainy periods.

“As it is now, the traffic is heavy and I am sure there will be an increase in the fare as I am going to the office,” he said.

Another resident, Miss Favour Blessing, who lives around Ilepo in Abule Egba and works in a Spar in Ikeja, told NAN that the fare to her office usually was between N600 and N800 if there was no rain.

“Right now, with the rain, the fare could be between N1,000 and N1,400.

“It is worrisome because of the economic situation in the country. Sometimes, I don’t even go to work because of the hike in fare when it rains,” she said.

A schoolteacher, Mrs. Juliet Okonkwo, said most of her students come late to school during the rainy season.

Okonkwo added that the rain did not only affect the students, but also the teachers.

“We have to make our way to work even with the gridlock because we have a responsibility to the kids,” she said.

Mr Gideon Adarugo, a resident at Abule-Osun, Ojo area of the state, said floods have overrun drainage in the area.

“Everywhere is flooded. We have been evacuating water from our premises since the rain started.

“If the rain continues in the next two hours, our gutters will overrun, and we do not know what to do. It is a swampy area, but we have not had it this bad in recent times.

“We hope the water stops rising as soon as the rain stops,” Adarugo said.

Mrs Temitope Babalola, a resident on Lambe Street at Egbeda area, said the flood grounded activities in the area as school pupils were advised to stay back home.

“The flood is massive in our area, even last week, the water seeped into our home. We had to bail it out.

“It is a complete shutdown for us as the children are unable to go to school due to persistent rain today, and the consequent flooding of the entire street.

“Some private school authorities in the neighbourhood called parents to keep their wards back home due to the floods.

“Vehicles are unable to navigate their way through the flood, we are all indoors hoping the rains will soon stop.

“Jimoh bus stop, Akowonjo area and Shasha axis are currently flooded, even for vehicular movements,” Babalola said.

On her part, Ms Tina Otibho, a resident at Gbagada area, said the flood stopped her and other road commuters from going to work.

“The Gbagada/Oworonshoki Expressway is currently flooded, and we cannot access the Third Mainland Bridge to the island.

“The canals in the area are over flooded, and are seeping into the houses in the area. We just hope the rain does not persist, otherwise, we will all be grounded for a while,” Otibho said.

A resident at Ojo barracks, Mrs Glory Micheal, said: “The whole area has been flooded since the rain commenced. The whole neighbourhood is currently flooded since the rain began in the early hours of the day. We have been scooping water out of our houses to keep the flood out.

“We hope the rain does not persist, otherwise, we may be at the brink of losing property to the flood.”

“The drainage in the area is overflowing, and with the torrent of the rain, we may experience this flood for some days,” Michael said.

Also, Mr Collins Ani, a trader at the popular GL Market at Trade Fair, said flood at Underbridge bus stop has doubled in size.

“Our customers are finding it hard to access the market due to the flood at the bus stop.

“It has been a hectic day, and vehicular movement is difficult to navigate into the market due to the flood and bad roads.

“We hope the rain does not continue like this, or we would not be able to enjoy sales as usual,” Ani added.

Another resident, Mrs Lara Ashaolu, said the flood was quite minimal at Ayobo compared to the ones they experienced earlier in the year.

Ashaolu, however, said some streets in the area were completely flooded as residents could not go about their usual activities.