Nigeria: The Rains Have Come With High Risk Of Devastation And Deaths

What is defeaning is not actualy the torrents of rain. But rather, the indifference of both the government and the citizenry.

True, the rains have always caused massive devastation to inadequate, poorly maintained – often defective – infrastructure and heavy loss of lives.

More instructive of the general national malaise is the manifest indifference of resignation of both governments and the populace to this annual reenactment of tragedy.

When it rains heavily in Lagos, the streets are inundated by torrents of water flowing from clogged up drains.

Traffic comes go a standstill. Heavily drenched men, women and children scramble for what shelters they can find – raincoats and umbrellas are now apparently out of fashion! Or is it utility.

Up country, the situation would not be better. Expect that soon, government agencies would warn of the number of states at risk.

Recall that six years ago, the worst flooding in more than 40 years claimed an estimated 431 lives and displaced nearly 2 million people – the National Emergency Management Agency couldn’t provide more than a guess-estimate!

One of the worst-hit areas recently was Suleja, just north of Abuja.

Several people were killed, residential buildings washed away, cars and vehicles destroyed or submerged underwater.

The proximate causes of disasters are there for all to see. In most urban areas, particularly Lagos, citizens dump refuse into open planned drain systems.

Local authorities have not cleared the drains before the rains started.

Unlike in more serious countries, there are few arrangements for evacuating and sheltering endangered communities.

Sure, this year and next no practical measures will be taken to prevent and reduce the devastation or loss of lives.

Sure too, there would be abundant prayers for the problem to somehow disappear –  the clogged drains, the horrendous traffic. Of course, massive loss in manpower productivity to the broad economy is a  completely irrelevant statistic.

Update

There is no let-up in the pounding rainstorms-the worst in a decade, as the death toll rises and the damage to property worsens. Latest reports put the death toll at over 150, the number of people displaced at  more than 6,300 and houses destroyed at nearly 6,300 and counting.

Loss of life and severe damage have affected all parts of the country.

Noticeably absent are regular updates and disaster relief bulletins from the National Emergency Relief Agency.