1 Dies, 2 Missing In Oyo Flood

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has confirmed the death of one person in the flooding that occurred around Joyce-B area of Ibadan, Oyo State on Tuesday.

NEMA’s South West Coordinator, Kadir Olanrewaju, who disclosed this to newsmen in Ibadan while assessing the level of damage on Wednesday, said two persons were still missing due to the flood.

It would be recalled that a heavy downpour on Tuesday across some areas within Ibadan metropolis affected some residential areas and destroying property worth millions of naira.

Olanrewaju attributed the flooding to improper channelisation of drainage in the area, saying the volume of water in the area was too much for the available drainages.

He said the flood from the heavy rainfall reached the gate level, in the area designated as a flood plane.

“People need to move away from this place because if we have another rain, the flood will be devastating; you can see that the lower parts of most of the buildings and the fences are weak,” he said.

A resident of the area, Solomon Agboro, said the flood covered the ground floor of his building, forcing his family members to run upstairs for safety.

Agboro, who said the flood destroyed all the property on the ground floor, called on the government to come to their aid in creating proper channelisation in the area.

Another resident, Oni Bisola, said she had been living in the area for four years and had been experiencing flooding every year.

She, however, said that Tuesday’s flooding was the heaviest in the area since she moved in.

Oni added that most household items like gas cookers, televisions, compressors, machines and mattresses, among others, were destroyed to the flood.

She called on the management of the Ibadan South West local government and Governor Seyi Makinde to come to their aid.