By Mark Lenu
Students and pupils in Ahoada West Local Government Area of Rivers State have stopped going to school due to the growing flood in their area which has started invading school buildings.
Report had it that the entire four Joinkrama communities in Ahoada West have now been submerged by flood, forcing the people of the area to look for elsewhere to resettle.
A school principal in the area, Wisdom Owolo lamented the negative impact of the flood on the students and pupils of the area, saying that the situation is discouraging the students and pupils from learning.
“Our curriculum is negatively impacted by the flood as it prevents the smooth completion of the learning cycle. The teachers and staffers are also disturbed because our houses have been occupied by flood.
“We need a lasting solution to the flood monster disturbing us every year. The government shouldn’t mind what it will cost. What is important is to stop the flood once and for all,” he said.
The area is surrounded by the Orashi River where the flood that is troubling the people of Ahoada is reported to have been coming from and it occurs yearly.
2012 was said to have been one of the worst floods in decades, leading to the death of several persons and property worth billions of naira destroyed by flood.
People especially women and minors were reported to have drowned, while others were bitten by snakes in 2012. The flood also forced the farmers to harvest their crops prematurely.
Some of the schools which were destroyed by previous flood had not been renovated till date. Report revealed that some schools in the area don’f have classroom desks for learning as students are said to have been sitting on bare floors to learn.
