The National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, has warned about imminent flooding in some local government areas of Rivers State during the rainy season.
The South South Cordinator of NEMA, Godwin Tepikor, who gave the warning in Port Harcourt on Saturday, explained that Rivers Niger and Benue often empty their waters in the Niger Delta region when they overflow during the rainy season.
Tepikor, therefore, called on local government council authorities to begin now to identify high places where their citizens can be relocated when the flooding starts.
He said the local government areas that may be impacted by flooding include; Abua Odual, Ahoada East and West, Ogba Egbema Ndoni, Okirika, Asari Tori, Akuku Toru and Andoni.
According to the NEMA boss, ‘There are local government areas and communities in Rivers State that are around the coastal areas. Recall that Rivers Niger and Benue empty their waters down here in the Niger Delta; Bayelsa and Rivers state and every year there are local governments and communities that are impacted.’
‘Our concern is that residents should begin to take proactive measures by clearing their drains and the local government councils should begin to identify high grounds where they can relocate their citizens in the event that the flood impact these local government areas.’
‘Residents also should not throw garbages into the drains, they should begin to clear the drains so that in the event that the flooding happens, the impact will be highly mitigated. We must be as serious as if nothing was done.’
‘On our part as National Emergency Management Agency, we will soon begin our sensitisation and awareness creation to the states under our jurisdiction’.
He further called on all stakeholders to join hands in mitigating the impact of flood, adding that disaster management should be the business of every one.
AFRICA TODAY NEWS, NEW YORK