Floods following a torrential rainfall in the night of Wednesday, July 14, 2021 displaced some residents of Ado Ekiti, in Ekiti State, from their homes and destroyed properties.
Mostly affected were residents of Balemo and Tinuola areas, off Afao Road in Ado Ekiti, where flood submerged over 10 buildings and destroyed properties worth millions of naira .
“There was a torrential downpour on Monday evening and again on Wednesday night, which led to flooding and some buildings submerged in water, forcing residents to temporarily flee their homes,” one of the affected residents, Mr Blessing Oladele, said.
Oladele said in Ado Ekiti on Thursday, July 15 that the rainfall led to the Elemi stream overflowing its banks, which resulted in fast-flowing flood that submerged some houses in the area.
“It affected about 10 buildings and we would have recorded casualties, but for the fact that we quickly ran out of our buildings with our wives and children to seek refuge in safe neighboring houses.
“Apart from affecting some of the building walls and foundations, we have lost other valuables like electronics, clothing materials, beddings , chairs, rugs, kitchen utensils to this flooding.
“The carnal was dredged during the first term of Governor Kayode Fayemi, but it has been blocked by debris Which I believe caused the blockade that led to the flood,” he stated.
Another victim, Mr. Sunday Ojo, appealed to the government to dredge the affected carnal identified as the main cause of the destructive flooding .
“The carnal at Tinuola area needs to be dredged to be able to contain the water from upland.
“I also advise that dredging of Elemi stream will help in controlling flooding because each time it overflows its bank it pushes water backward that affects that section and other adjoining areas”, he said.
When contacted, the Chairman, Ekiti State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Capt. Sunday Adebomi, said the agency was aware of the incident.
The SEMA boss stated that his agency would conduct on- the- spot assessment to know the extent of damage and how best to intervene to control flooding in the area.
By Bolanle Lawal
