Flood submerges houses in Adamawa communities, kills residents

Flood has killed some residents of the Yola North and Yola South Local Government Areas of Adamawa State, leaving several houses submerged.

Torrential rain, which started before dawn and continued on Sunday morning, wreaked havoc in different communities in the state.

According to reports, the worst-hit areas are Yola Bye Pass, Sabon Pegi, Yolde Pate, and Modire, where houses have been submerged, farmlands destroyed, and roads ruined, preventing human and vehicular movements.

Also multiple deaths are being recorded, with children being the worst affected.

The casualty figure could not be ascertained as of press time, as the search and rescue process was still ongoing.

A resident of the Sabon Pegi area, Furera Adamu, said, “Many lives were lost, especially children. We’re still counting and searching. We never thought this could happen.”

Already, residents of Shagari Low Cost and Sabon Pegi communities have fled their houses as the areas have been totally submerged.

The flood is not receding as many homes are still inhabitable, forcing their occupants to find shelter in the surrounding countryside.

Reports also said electricity supply had been disconnected in worst affected areas.

“We lost everything. The water rushed in so suddenly that we had no time to rescue our things,” a resident of Yola Bye Pass lamented.

The ravaging flood has also swept away vast tracts of farmland, heightening fears of likely food crisis.

Families have been dislocated, and the risk of deadly waterborne disease is increasing as a result of stagnant water and poor sanitation in affected areas.

Adamawa State Emergency Management Agency has not issued an official statement on the development.

But the Adamawa Commissioner of Police, CP Dankombo Moris, has deployed trained marine police and engine boats to render assistance to people in distress.

This was contained in a statement by the state Police Public Relations Officer, SP Suleiman Yahaya Nguroje, on Sunday.

“The Adamawa State Police command in collaboration with personnel of 23 Brigade, Yola mobilized to the affected areas to actively engage with the community and render assistance to the people,” he said.

The police spokesman disclosed that so far, two corpses had been found and deposited at the Modibbo Adama University Teaching Hospital.