Floods: Owerri under siege, anguish

Recently, a heavy downpour unleashed havoc on Owerri, capital of Imo state and its residents.
CHIDIEBERE IWUOHA reports that the development has left a tale of pain and sorrowRecently, a heavy downpour unleashed havoc on Owerri, capital of Imo state and its residents.
CHIDIEBERE IWUOHA reports that the development has left a tale of pain and sorrow

Owerri, the Imo state capital that prides itself as cool ambiance for tourists and generally holiday makers is currently threatened by erosion and fl oods.
Th e tourism and hospitality destination is now being aff ected by the twin natural disasters and this is causing them their joy.
Th e consequence of the recent fl oods is that the serenity and cleanliness which the city was associated with, is being destroyed by an unclean environment.
Urban development as major cause Since three years now, the roads and streets of the city have been witnessing intimidating fl ooding any time it rains.
Unfortunately, the activity of Imo state Government’s Urban Renewal programme in which major roads in the state capital are being expanded to contain more vehicles and pedestrians is a major cause of the ugly development.
Th e governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, has always argued that an 8-lane or 6-lane road would create more space for vehicles to operate and would also boost the aesthetic nature of the city.
It is therefore not surprising that he is constructing overhead railings on some of the roads.
And some of the original gutters constructed by the fi rst civilian governor of the state, Chief Sam Mbakwe, have been blocked to make way for what people believe are inferior ones.
Th ese blocked gutters and roads were constructed by a construction giant, with modern and relevant machines at the beginning of 2nd Republic, while the present government is constructing its gutters by direct labour on daily pay basis.
But not only that, some of them are constructed haphazardly.
It would start from somewhere and is blocked by a heap of sand, rubbish or ordinary ground somewhere, thereby making it impossible for water to fl ow from one gutter to another.
Th e result is that the dirty water which should have gone through the gutters, come up and spread on the roads, thereby A resident bemoaning his fate after the fl ood.
(Above) Submerged vehicles in a compound along Samek Close Works layout Features Recently, a heavy downpour unleashed havoc on Owerri, capital of Imo state and its residents.
CHIDIEBERE IWUOHA reports that the development has left a tale of pain and sorrow Since three years now, the roads and streets of the city have been witnessing intimidating fl ooding any time it rains making it diffi cult for vehicles and commuters to have free movement.
Blocking existing drainages Also, some of the drainages, notably the one on Whetheral Road, is covered by government to prevent rubbish from entering the gutters, enable pedestrians work on them and allow vehicles enough space to park.
But the little openings on them do not allow high current water to pass through.
Th e result is that the water goes back and fl oods the road.
One of the water tunnels on Whetheral by Okigwe Road constructed by the Mbakwe’s administration may be closed by the Okorocha administration.
Th is is because the tunnel which is situated far away from the road is now at the centre of the road after the road expansion.
And if left like that, it would be a threat to traffi c fl ow.
And if it is blocked, Imo people should be prepared for a self-made hurricane someday.
Residents fair share of the blame A few months ago (at night), a vehicle ran into the tunnel and got stuck.
If not for the quick intervention of passersby, the occupants may have perished there.
Another factor that contributes to the fl ooding in the city is the regrettable mentality of residents towards cleanliness.
Residents are used to dropping rubbish anywhere they like, especially in the gutters as though they were dust bins and even throw them out of moving vehicles.
Some days ago, an occupant of a vehicle dropped off banana peels from the window which landed on a man waiting for a taxi to World Bank.
Before the man could understand what happened, the vehicle had sped past.
Lack of monthly sanitation exercise Again, the authorities in the state appear not to be interested in the cleanliness of the environment.
All that matters to them perhaps, is the disposal of dumped refuse, no more no less.
Th ere is no government policy that would help change the attitude of residents.
Even the monthly cleanup exercise reintroduced by the Federal Government has not been strictly complied with.
Before the Buhari-led administration it was not observed in the state as the state government was always cancelling it as a way of scoring cheap political goals, claiming that it would not direct people to clean up their environment.
As a result, residents took to indiff erent attitude and are quick to respond: “some people are employed to clean up the town”.
Even those that supposedly clean up the town are worse off , as often times they sweep the rubbish into the gutters.
And the fl ood visits As if to teach the residents a bitter lesson, the heavens opened up last Th ursday and the whole city and its environs got fl ooded.
Th e heavy downpour started around 1.
00 am and by 10.
00 am it was not done.
Consequently, some areas like Word Bank Housing Estate, Imo Housing Estate, Works Layout and the main town were washed away and impassable.
Many people could not go to work and those who dared, got soaked in the water.
Some left their vehicles at home while those who decided to try their luck had their vehicles submerged in the fl ood.
Everywhere you turned, it was a tale of anguish and lamentations, resulting from the havoc wrecked by the rains.
Property damaged A lot of vehicles broke down and the next day, their owners were busy trying to fi x them in diff erent mechanic workshops.
Houses were not left out as some of them were submerged.
But surprisingly, the next day, the fl oods disappeared from the streets of Owerri.
A resident at Egbu, Owerri North Area of the state, Madam Chioma, said water came into their house and destroyed all their household items but she was grateful to God that no life was lost.
Also, a lecturer in one of the higher institutions in the state, Mr Okoroafor feared that Hurricane Harvey or Irma was hitting the state, a situation he said would be more devastating because the state was unprepared for it.
Appeal to government He urged the state government to hasten up with its Urban Renewal programme and complete the road projects under construction, adding that by so doing, it would reduce the devastating eff ect of fl oods.
Another resident, Mr Innocent Uwadi advised government to enact a law against indiscriminate dumping of refuse and rubbish on the ground or in the drainages or mandate vehicle owners to put rubber baskets in their vehicles for their passengers to use when they want to dispose rubbish as was done by previous governments ,and clear the gutters once and for all.
He was optimistic that if that is done, fl ooding in the city would be checked.

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