Etta Michael Bisong
Over 15 people have been estimated to lose their lives and properties worth several million of naira destroyed due to the impacts of the flood that attacked Ibadan, Oyo state capital.
Ten out of the fifteen lives lost during the incident were reported to have died at Apete area of the city due to the sudden collapse of make-shift Bridge which people in the area have been using since.
Following the devastating impact of the flood, furious youths took the laws into their hands and vandalised the work station of the contractor handling construction of the Ijokodo-Apete road and the bridge linking the two communities, destroying equipment and property at the station.
It was gathered that a church and some buildings close to the river bank were submerged, resulting in the loss of property while five people including three children of a woman said to be under spiritual refuge in that church were taken away by the flood.
Victims were said to be part of the huge crowd that fell over the make-shift bridge after the rain.
An eye witness, who gave his name as Adewale said he was part of the team that rescued some people who had also fallen over the bridge.
According to him, the make- shift bridge had become a no-go area for many residents in the Apete community because the river overflows its bank as a result of rain.
He said when the rain which started around 4pm stopped, some of the residents decided to make use of the makeshift bridge and in the process fell into the river and were washed away.
“It was around 6:30pm that it happened. We just heard the cries of people who fell into the river and I decided to join the rescue team and we eventually succeeded in rescuing about six people while no fewer than 10 others were washed away,” he said.
