Our reporter stepped out early on a Tuesday morning in September to investigate the effects of flooding in several areas of Akungba, a town in Ondo State, Nigeria. It was observed that street became sodden and disorganised after the previous night’s downpour.
Victor Ozonwoye, a chemist, owns a shop in a flood-ravaged area of Akungba. He looked weary when this reporter approached him in his shop.
Mr Ozonwoye made it clear that his chemist shop was his only source of livelihood, through which he could feed his family. However, the heavy erosion that befell his community had cut off part of his shop blocks and foundation.
“This junction appears to be the epicentre of erosion and flooding. Whenever it rains, I get uneasy, hoping that my shop won’t collapse while I’m inside. Students and their cars frequently get into accidents because of ugly erosion that has caused sections of the motorway to fall away. Those contractors have occasionally worked here since May, but we don’t know why they have since abandoned the project and left this site unfinished,” he lamented.
Apart from him, Abdulgafar Kayode, a 400-level student of Adekunle Ajasin University Akungba and a resident of four years, who owns a car, narrated his ordeal on the road some months back.
“You see that road, if I can remember vividly, I nearly had an accident around May when I was coming back from school, I had to ply the road home,” he continued. “Unknown to me, the flood was much already due to the heavy rainfall we had the night before and I didn’t know that erosion had torn part of the road apart. As I sped up to pass the junction to my house my tyre burst by hitting a very hard rock while the car stopped abruptly. I didn’t sustain bruises, but my car did.
‘‘Also, the dirt that accumulates at that junction is nothing to write home about as it contributes to health hazards and diseases. Image plying that road every day while inhaling dirt stink, that dirt is normally brought to the junction by the flood and erosion on the road which needs to be completed after being abandoned for months,” he concluded.
Impact of Climate on Residents
In June 2024, there was a cholera outbreak in several countries and even Nigeria which was caused by heavy rainfall and subsequent floods that have led to waterborne disease among citizens as the impact of flooding is on the rise.
According to a report by the World Health Organisation (WHO), increased morbidity is associated with climate change, which could arise from more frequent outbreaks of endemic and emerging waterborne and vector-borne infectious diseases such as cholera, Lassa fever, diarrhea as well as injuries and mortality that follow extreme weather events, like heat waves and floods.
A report by Humangle on flooding in the southwest emphasises that climate change can cause the effects of heavy rainfall that leads to floods which later result in erosion and waterborne diseases, as several southwest communities suffer this, including Akungba in Ondo State.
Tales of woe
Mrs Florence Bamgboye, who owns a corn stand at the crossroad, described how the flood played a dire role in her children’s ill health and the decline of her business.
“The heavy downpour goes to our streams, rivers and even well, as nearly all wells in Akungba don’t have rings. It is just clay, so this erosion water is still what we drink and take in.
“My last born (pointing to her younger child) who is around the age of four has been suffering from cholera for about a week now due to diseases from the well water we drink which was constituted by flood,” she lamented bitterly.
Meanwhile, the unfinished part of the road had caused havoc, as the recent rain kept eating deeper into the potholes, causing the road to become dilapidated.
Also, Chike Ozonwoye, a popular gas seller at Akungba, explained that he thought they would complete the road the moment the contractor started but their hopes were raised only to be dashed.
“However, even though the rains had stopped, the contractor is still not yet back on site, resulting in a lot of damage. Although they promised to come back to the site when the rain stopped, we couldn’t find them to date” he lamented.
“The potholes in front of my shop keep getting deeper as heavy rainfall continues. We hope it stops soon” he said with teary eyes.
Abandoned Project Awarded to an Inactive Company
In 2022, a budget of over ₦55 Million was allocated for the repair of the Akungba-Ikare road in Ondo state. The contract was awarded under the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing.
When Dataphyte visited the community to evaluate the progress of the project, It was discovered that the project was abandoned.
The project was contracted to Jadfem Nigeria Ltd. A search on Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), indicates that the road construction was awarded to an unregistered company.
However, this reporter reached out to the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, but there was no response. Also, a Freedom of Information (FOI) request was sent to the Ministry two weeks prior to press time also went unanswered.
Expert insight
In an interview with an environmentalist, Emmanuel Kilaso the Executive Director of Securecycle Environmental and Climate Change Initiative, he gave an insight into the consequences, impact and solutions to flood in rural communities.
“Rural communities are vulnerable as they exist without good infrastructures like good drainage systems, so when flooding happens they are devastated and they lose properties and homes. Meanwhile rescue is far from them as it takes longer for the government to help. The impact is always high on the community dwellers.”
Speaking on solutions, he explained the need for sensitization, putting early warning systems in place to warn people about emergency floods or erosion as this helps them know when to evacuate such environments. Proper societal education should be given to people in the rural areas and the government should provide infrastructure as promised by constructing a properly channelled drainage that water can flow through thereby putting an end to the menace.
Government should create roads with drainage in a professional way and residents should stop pouring dirt during heavy rain to end floods.