The yearly loss of lives and property to flood in and around Jigawa State of Nigeria has consumed 18 persons, the State Emergency Management Agency, (SEMA) has told journalists. Nearly 7000 houses were involved across 19 Local Government Areas of the state.
local government areas which lost lives include Gumel, Dutse, Ringim, Jahun and Gwaram. Those that suffered the flooding of property include Hadeijia, Dutse, Babura, Ringim and Malamadori. Others are Gumel, Jahun, Birnin Kudu, Taura, Kazaure, Maigatari, Kiyawa and Buji. The rest are Gagarwa, Kirikasama, Garki, Kiyawa, Gwaram, Kafin Hausa and SuleTankarkara.
Alhaji Yusuf Sani, the Executive Secretary of the agency explained how the current raining season triggered this flooding contrary to previous years when flooding arose in some other areas of the state as a result of opening of dams in Kano. Either way, building collapse claimed most of the deaths.
Alhaji Sani disclosed that the state had commenced intervention across the local government areas, beginning with cash for the victims to buy food stuff but he did not mention anything about rebuilding the houses. Most of the buildings are usually mud houses. And what is needed to stem the yearly ritual of preventable deaths is mass housing built of modern items that cannot so easily be swept away by fast moving body of water.
In the meantime, the state has also announced loss of two pilgrims in this year’s pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia. The list is made up of a male and a female.
