Authorities in the West African country of Nigeria have confirmed that 600 people have died as a result of the ongoing floods in some states in the country, the Nigerian Minister for Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development told the press during a media briefing.
A total of 2,407 people have been injured and over two million people have so far been affected and displaced with over 80,000 homes completely ravaged. This is Nigeria’s worst flood in a decade.
The Minister for Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Minister Sadiya Umar Farouq has called on the “State governments, local government councils and Communities to prepare for more flooding by evacuating people living on flood plains to high grounds, provide tents and relief materials, fresh water as well as medical supplies for a possible outbreak of water-borne disease.”
The devastating flood started in July and has so far affected 31 of Nigeria’s 36 states. According to climate experts, poor environmental practices and unplanned infrastructural activities are the root cause of the ongoing disaster. But the Nigerian government has refuted these claims citing that this year’s flooding was caused by overflowing rivers, rainfalls that have long stretched beyond the usual season, and more historically, the release of excess water from Cameroon’s Lagdo dam
Many roads and other key infrastructure have been destroyed with properties worth billions of Naira being destructed. The federal government announced last week it had started delivery of food items to the affected states.
