The National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, says it has made moves to put action plans and contingency measures on the ground to cushion effects of flooding and other disasters in Rivers State.
This is following the prediction that there would be heavy flooding in parts of Rivers among other state in the country from this September.
Speaking in Port Harcourt during a two day coordination meeting of stakeholders in disaster management, organised by NEMA South-South zone, with support from Mustafa Meihaja, the DG of the agency, the zonal Director of NEMA, Dr. Martins Ejike, noted that the body is ready to tackle disasters in the state.
Ejike stated that the essence of the meeting is to coordinate the different agencies and ministries in disaster management and give each of them responsibilities to handle should the flooding occur.
However, the Rivers State Government has said it is prepared to handle the predicted 2018 flooding in parts of the state.
The Special Adviser to Governor Nyesom Wike, on Emergency and Relief Services, Hon. Chris Berewari, mentioned that the state has commenced sensitisation of residents of flood prone communities.
Berewari also disclosed that the state government has started coordinating camps to house persons that may be displaced by the flood.
Meanwhile, Umar Aliyu Mohammed, leader of the team set up by the FG through the NEMA office to visit Rivers and Bayelsa States in respect of the flood, urged residents of flood prone areas of the states to take precautionary measures to mitigate effects of the flood.
You will recall that last week NEMA mentioned over ten states likely to affected by flood this year with Rivers state inclusive.
