The State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) in Ebonyi has reported that two individuals have died as a result of flooding that has affected several parts of the state since June. Mr. Clement Ovuoba, the Executive Secretary of SEMA, shared this information in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abakaliki on Tuesday.
The victims include an expectant mother, Mrs. Ozoemena Ugbega, and a young man. Ovuoba noted that the flood has impacted 12 schools, six houses, and 45 shops at the Abakaliki Building Material Market, affecting a total of 173 individuals from the Ikwo, Izzi, Abakaliki, and Afikpo Local Government Areas.
Additionally, the disaster has destroyed 261 hectares of farmland in the region. Ovuoba highlighted that these local governments are among those identified as flood-prone areas by the Nigeria Institute of Transport Technology (NITME) and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), which predicted that the flooding would continue until November.
He appealed to NEMA to consider the agency’s reports for further intervention, emphasizing the lack of relief and rehabilitation materials. “We have complete reports on the level of disaster in each community in all the LGAs mentioned,” Ovuoba stated.
To mitigate the situation, SEMA has been actively educating the public through town hall meetings with community stakeholders, traditional leaders, youth, and women, as well as through radio and television programs focused on disaster preparedness and management.