Some 148 local government areas in 31 states of Nigeria are said to have fallen within the high flood risk zone, while 249 are forecast to remain within the moderate flood risk areas.
This is according to Prof. Joseph Terlumun Utsev, the Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, while presenting an update on Nigeria’s flood outlook on Thursday in Abuja.
He also stated that the remaining 377 local government areas in the country are within the low flood risk areas. The high flood risk states as predicted are Adamawa, Akwa-Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross-River, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Nasarawa, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, Zamfara and the FCT.
Through the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA), an agency under the Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation, the ministry takes responsibility for the provision of information on flood forecasts and alerts, as well as the monitoring of all the major rivers in Nigeria, including the transboundary Rivers of Niger and Benue.
A breakdown of the flood outlook for the months of April to June shows that 72 LGAs remain at high flood risk and 63 LGAs face likelihood of moderate flood risk. For the months of July to September, 135 LGAs and 221 LGAs are likely to be impacted by high and moderate flood risks respectively, while the outlook for the months of October to November predicts 44 LGAs and 100 LGAs to be in high and moderate flood risk zones.
The present pockets of flash and urban flooding incidences across the country are depicted in this category, such as the flooding events in Lagos metropolis and Trademore Estate in Abuja.
In view of this, Utsev called on all Nigerians and the general public, especially states and local government councils, to intensify and step-up efforts for averting flood related disasters in their domains, as the country approaches the peak of the flooding season.
His words: “It should be noted that some States have started experiencing varying levels of flooding and its associated disasters as early as April this year. So far, more than ten (10) States of the Federation and the FCT have experienced one degree of flooding or the other with several casualties recorded including displacement of people and loss of property.
“For example, the torrential downpour in the early hours of 24th June, 2024 in the FCT resulted in flooding of Trade More Estate in Lugbe where 2 deaths were reported and several houses submerged. AMAC, Kuje, Gwagwalada, Bwari, Kwali LGAs have also been flooded. Other affected States and LGAs are: Anambra (Onitsha North), Edo (Benin), Benue (Makurdi), Kwara (Oke-Ero, Moro), Lagos (Agege, Alimosho, Ikorodu, Lagos Island, Ikeja, Eti-Osa), Ogun (Ijebu-Ode), Osun (Oriade), Nasarawa (Doma), Taraba (Takum, Sarduna), Yobe.”
The minister further noted that as rainfall increases both in frequency and intensity, particularly in the southern part of the country, this will increase the level of flooding and may worsen the ravaging cholera outbreak. According to the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), the cholera outbreak has resulted in 63 deaths and 2,102 suspected cases as of Wednesday, July 3, 2024.
The flood incidents recorded so far this year, he said, have been flash/urban floods, resulting from high rainfall intensities of long duration and blocked drainage systems in the urban areas and their metropolis. As at today, both Kainji and Jebba Dams on River Niger are still impounding water into their reservoirs. Shiroro Dam on river Kaduna is equally impounding water. There is no release of water yet from any of the dams within and outside Nigeria.
River Flooding is expected in Nigeria beginning from July, and states that are likely to be impacted the most are Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Adamawa, Benue, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo, Jigawa, Kogi, Kebbi, Kaduna, Niger, Nasarawa, Ondo, Ogun, Rivers, Taraba and the FCT.
Nigeria is located within the River Niger Basin, which is occupied by nine member countries namely, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroun, Chad, Cote D’ Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Niger and Nigeria. The country is at the lowest portion of the Basin. This means that once the upper catchment of the Basin gets flooded, Nigeria should be prepared to experience flooding incidents.
The month of June 2024 signifies the beginning of hydrological year 2024/2025 in the Niger Basin, and the flow situation within the catchment is currently within normal, as the rising water levels at various monitoring stations in Niamey are still within acceptable level. The flow situation at Jiderebode in Kebbi State upstream of Kainji and Jebba reservoirs, which is the first monitoring station on the River Niger in Nigeria, is still at normal situation and the same thing applies to the flow at Lokoja in Kogi State at the the confluence of Rivers Niger and Benue.
In the words of the minister, “we are also monitoring the development on the River Benue Sub-Basin. Here, Wuroboki in Adamawa State is our first monitoring station where the flow from the upstream Cameroun is received.
“The flow situation at Wuroboki is relatively normal at this time, so there is no cause for alarm in terms of water releases on the Benue River basin. The Lagdo Dam operators have informed us that they are currently filling the dam for hydropower generation.”
Recommended measures by the minister for flood prevention include educating citizens to imbibe attitudinal change towards warnings by government agencies for flood prevention and desist from unethical traditional culture and beliefs, and the clearing of blocked drainage systems and canals. This exercise is to be undertaken down to grassroots levels including local government areas.
Others include relocation of people living along the water-ways and those that are having socio-economic activities on the flood plains, by the federal, state and local governments, consideration for channelization/training of major rivers in the country, states and local governments are encouraged to desilt river channels and canals and to construct/create buffer (or detention basins) in their respective constituencies to collect runoff waters, among others.
