By Peter Duru, Makurdi
Several houses, churches, schools, eateries and business premises have been submerged in Makurdi, the Benue State capital, following about 18 hours of heavy rainfall that forced residents to flee their homes and scramble to save their belongings
The downpour began around 8pm on Sunday and continued until about 3pm on Monday, flooding several parts of the city and rendering roads and streets impassable
Residents were seen moving to safer locations while others battled to salvage their property from the rising floodwater
Among the worst-hit areas was Gyado Villa, where many students of Benue State University, BSU, live off campus because of the availability of relatively affordable accommodation
Several apartments in the area were reportedly surrounded and subsequently inundated by floodwater
Other affected areas included Wurukum Market, Achussa, Idye, Wadata Rice Mill, parts of Makurdi New GRA, Awe Street, Behind Customary Court and communities behind Radio Benue
Families in the affected areas were seen making frantic efforts to move their belongings to safer locations
A BSU student, Terhemba Uhide, whose apartment in Gyado Villa was submerged, said he managed to save some valuables, including his credentials, after noticing that floodwater was entering his room
He said: “This is the first time I am suffering this in this house The rain was too much and I could not sleep in the night when I noticed that my surroundings had been taken over by floodwater.
“In fact, I immediately started removing my things, especially my credentials and other valuables At about 2am, water had already entered my room. Luckily, I saved my things on time.”
At Achussa, where the Media Village is located, several houses were also reportedly submerged, leaving residents awake for hours as they tried to protect their belongings
A civil servant living in the area, who spoke on condition of anonymity, expressed concern over what he described as recurring flooding in the community
The resident also questioned why the recently commissioned Idye Flood Control Project had not prevented the latest flooding
He said: “We thought the Idye Flood Control Project would end this yearly flooding in this part of the town, but that is not the case We are again faced with the same problem and people are suffering.
“Some people are blaming the contractor handling the ongoing work on the Achussa-Hotel Lucia Road for the situation We urge them to speed up the work in order to avert this horrible experience in the future.
“We cannot continue to have this kind of flooding every year People are losing their property and businesses, while residents are forced to stay awake throughout the night whenever there is heavy rainfall.”
As of the time of filing this report, rainfall had not completely stopped, heightening concerns among residents that more houses, businesses and other properties could be affected
Meanwhile, the Information Officer of the Benue State Emergency Management Agency, SEMA, Team Ager, confirmed that the agency had received reports of flooding in the Achussa area
Ager, however, said officials of the agency had yet to visit the community to assess the extent of the flooding