Olushola Omogbehin
Vehicular and business activities were grounded across parts of Lagos on Wednesday following hours of heavy downpour that left several communities flooded.
The flood which was more severe in flood-prone areas such as Maryland, Lekki, Ogba and Ikorodu, left many homes, shops and places of worship flooded as residents, shop and business owners lamented how their homes and shops were overrun by the flood.
A resident in Olatunji Street in Maryland, said the flood had been a recurring sight whenever it rained.
She said, “This has been happening for years now and it’s very hard for vehicles to go in or out of there. People even swim to their houses. It is not easy for people living around there to come out of their houses because the flood is too much. Some will even go as far as relocating to another place due to the flood.”
A businessman called Kanu and had lived there for three years said he was amazed at how quickly the flood spread across the street.
He said, “I watched as people tried to scoop water out of their homes after it entered their houses. I also suffered the same fate as the water flowed into my shop.”
As well, a member of a church in the area, identified simply as Christiana, also narrated how the worship centre was flooded, destroying some instruments in the process.
She said, “The flood has affected our church’s musical instruments. We will have to spend lots of money either to fix or replace them. When the canal is full, the water gets into the church, and it reaches half the building of the church, it causes extreme damage.”
However, motorists and pedestrians were not left out as they were captured in the gridlock that built up on several flooded roads across the state.
Reacting to the situation, the state Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, said Lagos, being a coastal city, remains vulnerable during heavy rains. He explained that flooding in Lekki’s Kusenla axis was due to a technical challenge with the drainage system and promised that a pumping station was already in the works to tackle it.
He said the flooding near House on the Rock church was caused by illegal constructions and indiscriminate dumping of refuse, warning that such infractions will no longer be allowed.
Wahab called on residents to support government efforts by keeping drains clean and avoiding building on floodplains.
