Floods Render 30,000 Homeless in Nigeria

Lagos: Local authorities in Nigeria’s southern state of Edo on Saturday said 30,000 people have been displaced by floods in more than 35 communities in eastern and central part of the state. The disaster had gone beyond the purview of local government council areas, Aremiyau Momoh, chairman of Etsako East, told reporters in Benin city, the state capital, Xinhua news agency reported. On his part, John Akhigbe, chairman of Etsako Central, called for urgent intervention from both the state and the federal governments. The duo said camps for the displaced had been placed in strategic locations across the council areas. Similarly, about 700 houses including large farmlands have been affected by flash floods following heavy rains in parts of oil rich Rivers state. Martins Ejike, a coordinator of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), told reporters in Port Harcourt, the state capital, that the floods began since August. Ejike advised people living in affected areas to relocate to higher ground for temporary shelters in case of the bigger floods. (IANS)