In the Akerebiata neighbourhood of Ilorin, the state capital, the Kwara State Fire Service reported on Saturday that it had pulled two dead from a river.
The two bodies were found in a river near the Olusola Saraki Abattoir on Sobi Army Barracks Road in Ilorin, according to a statement from the agency’s Head of Media and Publicity, Hassan Adekunle.
According to Adekunle, the findings by the Fire Service revealed that the car carrying the victims fell into the river while the driver was struggling to navigate through the flood, adding that it suddenly got stuck while the flood pushed the car and its occupants into the river.
“Today, October 1, 2022, the Kwara State Fire Service has removed two human bodies and a Toyota Yaris car with registration number, APP544E, from a river at opposite Olusola Saraki Abattoir, along Sobi Road in Ilorin, the capital of Kwara State.
The lack of drinkable water has made things worse for locals whose homes were damaged by the flood that ravaged several sections of Kogi State.
The people of Lokoja metropolis shared that the scarcity was caused by the flood which affected the state waterworks where water is processed and pumped for public consumption.
The pumps were seen to be dry at Gadumo New Layout, one of the communities near the River Niger that had many of its residents impacted by the flood. Some of the locals claimed that this scenario had not changed since last Sunday.
Under the condition of anonymity, a representative of the state Ministry of Water Resources told our correspondent, “We can only purify and pump water for public use when the flood leaves this area.”
Speaking with our correspondent, a resident in Gadumo, Muhammed Aliu, described the 2022 flood as more devastating, compared to that of 2012.
“In 2012, I was one of those who accommodated some victims in my house as the flood did not reach my house in Gadumo. Ironically, this year, I became one of the victims. The flood forced me and my family to relocate to a friend’s home somewhere at Ibaji quarters in Lokoja,” Aliu said.
Meanwhile, Governor Yahaya Bello has called on the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) to declare Kogi a state of national disaster, following the ravaging effect of flood in the state and environs.
“The President may wish to recall that he made such a declaration in response to the 2018 flooding – and the floods this year are projected to be much worse than anything we saw in 2018,” the governor said.
He added that the natural disaster had affected the nine local government areas of the state – Lokoja, Kogi-Koto, Ajaokuta, Ofu, Igalamela-Odolu, Bassa, Idah, Ibaji and Omala – which were along River Niger and River Benue.
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