Floods: Strategic Road Collapses, Communities Cut Off In Akwa Ibom

Four days of torrential rainfall have triggered severe flooding across parts of Akwa Ibom State, destroying property and cutting off communities in Uyo, Itu, Ibesikpo Asutan, Abak and Eket Local Government Areas.

In Eket, floodwaters caused a strategic road in Idua community to collapse, leaving residents and other road users struggling to access the affected area.

Checks by LEADERSHIP revealed the extent of the hardship suffered by residents, many of whom said they lost household property worth millions of naira to the floods.

Although no death was recorded, residents of Idua and neighbouring communities said the speed and intensity of the flooding left them with little time to save their belongings after moving their children to safety.

“We were practically swimming to take the children to safer locations,” one of the victims, Arit Asuquo, said, appealing to the government at all levels to urgently assist affected residents.

Another victim, Aniekan Eshiet, called for urgent repairs to the collapsed road, saying motorists, pedestrians, motorcyclists and other road users were finding it difficult to navigate the area because of the deep gully created by the flood.

The disaster has also disrupted economic activities in the affected communities.

A petty trader, Aniema Effiong, said traders and farmers had been unable to reach major markets to sell their goods and farm produce because of the collapsed road.

Community leader, Chief Akpan Essang, appealed to Governor Umo Eno and relevant government agencies to urgently intervene and address the situation.

“We are in deep distress because our major means of livelihood — farming and petty trading — have been truncated by the disaster,” a timber dealer, Etim Ekpe, said.

Another resident, Ettebong Usua, warned that the expanding gully posed a serious threat to the community.

“We are in deep danger because the gully is still eating up and may swallow the entire community and its environs,” he said.

Usua called for the urgent deployment of an emergency response team to prevent further damage.

He specifically appealed to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Ministry of Environment, Akwa Ibom State Environmental and Waste Management Agency (AKSEPWMA), Eket Local Government Council and the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs to coordinate immediate intervention.

Residents said they were particularly concerned that continued rainfall could worsen the damage and further isolate communities already struggling to access roads and markets.