The 2022 floods have severely devastated 31 states and the FCT, affecting over 1.4 million people and resulting in over 500 deaths.
So far, this year’s floods have been the worst the country has ever seen.
To alleviate the effects of the flood disaster, the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management, and Social Development seeks to implement the newly authorised National Flood Emergency Preparedness and Response Plan.
The impact of the flood across the country is already biting hard.
[wonderplugin_video iframe=”https://youtu.be/gatSSQxFYsg” lightbox=0 lightboxsize=1 lightboxwidth=960 lightboxheight=540 autoopen=0 autoopendelay=0 autoclose=0 lightboxtitle=”” lightboxgroup=”” lightboxshownavigation=0 showimage=”” lightboxoptions=”” videowidth=600 videoheight=400 keepaspectratio=1 autoplay=0 loop=0 videocss=”position:relative;display:block;background-color:#000;overflow:hidden;max-width:100%;margin:0 auto;” playbutton=”https://www.tvcnews.tv/wp-content/plugins/wonderplugin-video-embed/engine/playvideo-64-64-0.png”]
The Lokoja bridge, which is the link road between the North and the South has been flooded over, making commuting difficult
This has greatly affected trade as exchange of goods between the North and the South is now an herculean task
It has also resulted in long queues in fuel stations in Abuja and beyond
While people are still groaning under this discomfort, the flood has wrought even worse disasters in some other States and communities
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of humanitarian affairs, Nasir Sani-Gwarzo briefed journalists on the issues of the flood.
He said already, 790,254 people have been displaced and moved out of their locations, 1,546 persons among the displaced were injured.
He added that the National Emergency Management Agency have been able to provided relief materials to support over 315,000 of the displaced persons
Worse still are the farmlands affected by the floods, this may result in food insecurity in the year to come.
The Permanent Secretary stated that economic loss cannot be calculated because the rains have not yet stopped, but an evaluation of damage to farmlands, poultry facilities, animals, and fisheries is being conducted.
He assured that the government is making all efforts to mitigate the impact but would need public support to achieve this.
The impact of climate change is the responsibility of all citizens in order to manage its impact on their lives, he added.