‘32,837 houses damaged in 27 states’ — NEMA releases impact assessment of flooding

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) says flooding has affected 227,494 people and damaged 32,837 houses this year.

Zubaida Umar, the director-general (DG) of NEMA, said in a statement on Thursday that floodings were recorded in 27 states, while 16,488 hectares of farmlands with crops were also damaged.

In a statement on Thursday, Zubaida Umar, director-general (DG) of NEMA, urged communities at risk of flooding and those living along waterways to relocate to safer and higher grounds ahead of the rainy season peak.

“The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has responded to the recent flood incidents that devastated some communities across the country and commenced the assessment of the impacts with the various State Emergency Management Agencies (SEMAs) to provide timely and appropriate support to the affected persons,” the statement reads.

“The timely response by NEMA to the flood incidents is in furtherance of the early preparations made by the agency in the deployment of search and rescue teams and the placement of all NEMA zonal and operation offices on alert.”

Umar said NEMA has commenced the distribution of relief items to communities and people affected by the floods.

She reiterated the agency’s commitment to providing efficient disaster management and urged stakeholders to prepare to activate, at short notice, plans and preparations for floods in some parts of the country.

She said farmers should not panic over the temporary dry season being experienced in some states.

She noted 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).