Houses, Properties Destroyed As Heavy Rain Pummels Jalingo

Several residential areas in Jalingo, the Taraba State capital, were yesterday submerged following an early morning downpour, leaving a trail of destruction and displaced residents.

The affected areas are Mayo-Gwoi, Abuja Phase II, Mile 6 and other parts of the town, where floodwaters overtook homes and cut off access routes.

Also, parts of the Jalingo Main Market were affected, with goods worth millions of naira reportedly destroyed due to poor drainage system, indiscriminate dumping of refuse.

LEADERSHIP Sunday checks revealed that, apart from swampy areas where houses were affected, people also built in waterways.

The rainfall, said to be the first major downpour in the city this year, began at about 3am and lasted for about two hours and 30 minutes approximately.

Some of the residents said, the flooding occurred rapidly, giving little or no time to the people to salvage their belongings, as water levels rose and spread across neighbourhoods.

An affected resident, Nasiru Illiya, described the situation as alarming and lamented the recurring nature of the problem.

“We are tired of this happening every year. The drainage systems here are either blocked or completely insufficient. Each time it rains heavily, we are at risk,” Illiya said.

Many residents blamed the persistent flooding on poor drainage infrastructure and indiscriminate construction of houses, noting that the situation has worsened over time, with less intense rainfall.

Meanwhile, the executive secretary of SEMA, Dr Echuseh Audu, had mobilised her team to the various affected areas on the sport assessment and to evacuate residents to a more safer places.