From John Adams, Minna
No fewer than 30 people have reportedly been killed when a flood ripped through three communities in Mokwa Local Government Area of Niger State on Wednesday night. Scores were injured, while over 100 other villagers are said to be missing, with houses and farmland washed away as the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) intensifies search and rescue operations.
The flood occurred after torrential rainfall that lasted throughout Wednesday night, leaving several houses submerged. According to NSEMA, over 200 houses were affected in what the agency described as the highest flood disaster in the state in recent times.
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A similar flood disaster in the area last year wreaked havoc, leaving over 50 people, including women and children, dead, with houses and farmland washed away.
According to a statement by NSEMA, the latest disaster affected Tiffin Maza, Anguwan Hausawa, and Kpege areas in Mokwa town and other nearby communities.
“The incident occurred last night during a torrential downpour of very high intensity that lasted several hours, and the surging floodwater submerged and washed away over 50 residential houses with their occupants,” the agency stated, quoting Director General Alhaji Abdullahi Baba Arah.
He further stated that the agency, in collaboration with Mokwa Local Government Council, local divers, and other volunteers, is currently conducting search and rescue operations to rescue survivors and recover bodies.
The Director General disclosed that as of 10 a.m. Thursday, only three survivors—a woman and her two children—had been rescued and are receiving treatment at a makeshift Mokwa General Hospital. Thirty corpses have so far been recovered by the rescuers, with over 100 people still unaccounted for. The rescue operation is ongoing with the hope of recovering more bodies.
Meanwhile, the state government has condoled with the people of Mokwa Local Government over the unfortunate incident, describing it as sad.
The Special Adviser on Communication, Media, and Strategy, Hon. Jonathan Vatsa, in a statement, said the disaster was devastating and called on the Federal Government to come to the rescue of the state to reduce the sufferings of the affected people.
He also sympathised with the families of those who lost their lives in the disaster and assured the people that the state government would come to their rescue in this hard and difficult moment.
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