Heavy Rainfall Affects 82 Communities and 90 Schools in Niger State, Causes Damages Worth Millions

Heavy Rainfall Affects 82 Communities and 90 Schools in Niger State, Causes Damages Worth Millions

  • Torrential downpours have submerged 82 farming communities in Mokwa LGA of Niger state, causing extensive damage
  • The floodwaters have engulfed 47 primary schools and 43 primary healthcare centres, displacing numerous residents
  • Despite the widespread destruction, no lives were lost, and the affected farmers have relocated to safer areas

In a devastating turn of events, at least 82 farming communities in Mokwa local government area of Niger state have been submerged by floodwaters following torrential downpours that lasted several hours on Monday and Tuesday.

The deluge has wreaked havoc, washing away hectares of farmland and valuables worth millions of naira.

Heavy Rainfall Affects 82 Communities and 90 Schools
Heavy Rainfall Affects 82 Communities and 90 Schools. Photo credit: Bonnafe Jean-Paul
Source: Getty Images

Devastating floods in Niger state

The hardest-hit areas include Muregi Ward, where 51 communities were affected, and Gbara Ward, which saw 31 communities submerged.

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The floodwaters also engulfed 47 primary schools and 43 primary healthcare centres across Muregi, Gbara, and Ja’agi wards.

Among the affected communities in Muregi Ward are Egbagi-Majin Manna, Lugwa, Kpachita Wadata Edolusa, Esungi, Gbafu, Sanchiya, Kuchitagi, Badaifu, Tswasha, Jiffu, Nku kpata, and Muregi. Other submerged areas include Gbogifu, Edota-kuta, Lenfa-kuso, Giragi, Dako, Sunlati, Dakani, Twako, Yabagi, Guga, Gunji-yekogi, Gbachi, and Magi-bukun.

In Gbara Ward, the flood affected Kpata-kacha Epogi, Edogi, Suragi Gudungo Wunangi, Kipo Fofo, Tayi, Banzhi, Chewuya, Dutsun, and several other communities, Daily Trust reported.

Confirming the incident, Habibu Abubakar Wushishi, the director of media and strategy at the Niger State Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management, stated that no lives were lost. He added that the affected farmers had relocated to safer areas.

“The commissioner and permanent secretary received reports of flooding which occurred in various communities of Mokwa Local Government Area due to the heavy rainfall. Communities, properties, and farmlands were submerged and destroyed,” he said.

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The state government has expressed its condolences to the affected communities and urged them to move to safer grounds in line with NiMet’s predictions.

Floods wreak havoc in Kwara state

Meanwhile, Legit.ng earlier reported that the community of Bode-Saadu, the headquarters of Moro LGA in Kwara state, found itself submerged under floodwaters on Thursday.

The deluge, which left many houses and properties, including farm crops, afloat, was the result of heavy rains that lashed the area from Tuesday through Thursday, September 17-19.

Proofreading by Nkem Ikeke, journalist and copy editor at Legit.ng.

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Source: Legit.ng

Authors:
Basit Jamiu avatar

Basit Jamiu (Editor) With more than 5 years of experience in the media (Ikeja Bird, Prime Progress, The Movee), Basit Jamiu works as an editor at Legit Nigeria. He started his journalism career after graduating from Ekiti State University in 2018. He is a 2024 Open Climate Fellow (West Africa), 2023 MTN Media Fellow, OCRP Fellow at ICIR, and Accountability Fellow at CJID. He can be reached via basit.jamiu@corp.legit.ng.

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