Residents in the 18 Local Government Areas of Rivers State are now in a panic as the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, has warned them to take proactive steps to prepare for the upcoming flood in the state by creating designated Internally Displaced Persons, IDP camps.
NEMA’s forecast shows that flooding will sack the following LGs: Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni, Oyigbo, Tai. , Abua /Odual, Degema, Akuku-Toru, Port Harcourt City, Obio-Akpor, Gokana, Ahoada-West, Ahoada-East, Andoni, Asari-Toru, Bonny, Ogu Bolo, Okrika, Opobo-Nkoro and Etche, PM News reports.
The zonal director of NEMA, Walson Brandon, revealed that Nigeria Hydrological Services and Nigeria Meteorological Agency, NIMET singled out 11 local government area in Rivers state that will suffer severe flooding, while seven of them would suffer mild flooding and urge residents to prepare ahead of time.
Brandon said those who live in and around the low-level areas should begin to gather their valuables to safeguard them, and also identify the designated IDP camp for ease of movement as NEMA was making adequate arrangement to assist flood disaster-prone areas.
Walson Brandon also advised the Rivers State Government to set up Emergency Management procedures to mitigate the impeding flooding as local and state government are the first respondents in Emergency cases.
He said: “emergencies are local for example when there’s a plane crash, it happens at a place, so we expect the local residents around that area to assist in basic First aid and also respond adequately. Since disasters happen at a particular place, we expect the people to take action concerning their environment.
“Federal Government is a big entity that covers the 36 states and capital, in issues of emergency the first respondent is Local government, by extension the state as second before Federal government, so there’s a need for the state government to have robust state emergency team to mitigate the coming flooding.
“Our procedures are, if there’s an emergency, we move to the area and assess the situation and then make a recommendation to our headquarters for action, pending the response from the Headquarters we assist victims with basic first aid and emergency services. so the state is expected to act first.”
It would be recalled that during heavy rainy seasons the four local government areas of Orashi region that are linked to the tributaries of Orashi River were usually flooded causing extensive damages.
