Flooding: Taraba Gov’t Directs Residents Along River Benue Valley To Relocate

The Taraba State Government has directed residents of the state living along the River Benue valley to relocate to safer areas or face risk of being affected by flood.

The directive followed the announcement by the authorities of Lagdo Dam from the Republic of Cameroon that the dam managers have started releasing water from the dam.

A statement by the state’s Commissioner for Information and Re-orientation, Hon. Zainab Jalingo which was made available to LEADERSHIP on Monday, called on the public, especially residents along the River Benue Valley to urgently relocate to safer areas.

Jalingo explained that the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA) had issued a press release to that effect following the announcement.

“The dam managers have begun releasing water at a rate of 100m³/s (8.64 million cubic meters/day) as of 17th September 2024.

“While the release is being controlled to avoid exceeding the capacity of the Benue River system, there is a risk of flooding downstream, especially in Taraba State, which has the longest stretch of the Benue River.

“Communities at high risk include those in Karim-Lamido, Lau, Ardo-Kola, Gassol, Wukari, and Ibbi Local Government Areas.

“Residents in these areas are advised to relocate to safer locations as a precaution to avoid the dangers of flooding,” Jalingo stated.

LEADERSHIP gathered that the flood along River Benue has already started threatening farmers from Karim-Lamido where farms, especially rice farms, have been submerged inside water.