Niger flood: Fear of food scarcity rises as death toll reaches 151

The death toll in the Wednesday night’s destructive rain and the resultant flood that swept away the Mokwa Bridge in Niger State has increased to 151 as of Saturday, according to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).

This is just as President Bola Tinubu ordered the immediate activation of the National Emergency Response Centre to take care of displaced persons whose number was put at 3,018.

Hundreds of trailers laden with pepper, tomatoes, onions, yams, potatoes, rams, goats and cows remained stuck at the Mokwa end  of the bridge yesterday, sparking anxiety in the South-West about possible sharp increase in prices of the food items.

Demand for the food items and livestock is especially high around this time of the year when Muslims are preparing for the Eid el Kabir.

The festival is scheduled for Friday, June 6 across the world.

Some of the trailer drivers and owners of the goods yesterday openly lamented that highly perishable stuff like pepper and tomatoes were already rotting.

Some of the rams and cows were also in terrible conditions occasioned by insufficient food and water.

The social media were awash with dire messages from some of the stranded drivers and passengers advising housewives to manage whatever quantity of pepper they currently have.

Search and rescue operation extended far beyond the epicentre of the flooding yesterday, which led to the recovery of more bodies.

Spokesman for the Niger State Emergency Management Agency, Ibrahim Audu Husseini, confirmed that the death toll had now reached 151.

A total of 503 households were affected and 265 physical houses damaged or washed away.

At the last count, 3,018 people were displaced.