The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has said that 27 states and 227,494 persons have so far been affected by flood this year.
The agency said 32,837 houses and 16,488 hectares of farmlands with crops have also been damaged.
The agency in a statement in Abuja on Thursday, August 15, by the Head of the Press Unit of NEMA, Manzo Ezekiel, said the data was from its Emergency Operations Centre established for the flood monitoring and coordination of resource deployment.
The agency, however, stated that it had begun the deployment of relief items to complement efforts by the various state governments to provide succour to persons affected by the floods.
The Director-General of NEMA, Zubaida Umar, has also warned communities at risk of flooding and those living along waterways to relocate to safe higher grounds ahead of the peak of the rainy season.
With the increasing incidents in some parts of the country, Umar urged stakeholders to be alert and activate plans and preparations for floods.
The statement reads: “The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has responded to the recent flood incidents that devastated some communities across the country and commenced the conduct of the assessment of the impacts with the various States Emergency Management Agencies (SEMAs) to provide timely and appropriate support to the affected persons.
“The timely response by NEMA to the flood incidents is in furtherance to the early preparations made by the Agency, in deploying search and rescue teams and placing all NEMA zonal and operation offices on alert.
“The Agency has also commenced deployment of relief items to complement efforts by the various State Governments to provide succour to persons affected by the floods.
“Furthermore, NEMA shall continue with public sensitisation as well as grassroots awareness through advocacies and workshops on solid waste management to raise public consciousness on clearance of blocked drainages and waterways.
“So far based statistics from the NEMA Emergency Operations Centre established for the flood monitoring and coordination of resource deployment indicates that 27 states have been impacted with a total of 227, 494 persons affected and 32,837 houses damaged as well as 16,488 hectares of farmlands with crops also damaged.”
It continues: “The Director General NEMA Zubaida Umar re-affirms commitment of the Agency to coordinate and provide necessary support towards efficient disaster management in the country.
“She reiterates that communities at risk of flooding and those living along waterways should relocate to safe higher grounds ahead of the peak of the rainy season.
“Furthermore, she urged all stakeholders, especially SEMAs and community leaders, to be ready to activate plans and preparations for flood with the increasing incidents in some parts of the country at short notice.”
Umar also advised farmers not to panic over the temporary dry season being experienced in some states, noting that the situation will soon be over as contained in the seasonal climate predictions released earlier in the year by the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet).
