News
Flooding ’ll Affect 67,000 Persons In Rivers -RSG …Gets Two Camps Ready For IDPs
It is understandable that as one of the high risk states listed to experience looming destructive flooding this year, Rivers State was quick to identify five local governments areas, including Ahoada West, Ahoada East, Ogba/Egbama/Ndoni and Abua, among the flash points.
These localities, except Obia Akpor, were worst hit in 2012 when crushing flooding was experienced in the state.
Special Adviser to Governor Nyesom Wike on Emergency and Relief Services, Chris Berewari, while identifying the areas, said, “Entire Rivers State is a danger area, but we expect it more around Orashi areas, Ahoada, Omoku.”
The state Commissioner for Special Duties, Emeka Onowu, said, “Obia Akpor came into the envisaged flash points because of Elekha and Rukpokwu axis where we experienced flooding also last year.”
However, even before the recent warnings by relevant bodies, residents in some parts of the state have been grappling with flooding even before the rains peaked.
Worst hit are residents of Nkpolu-Rumuigbo in Obia-Akpor as well as those in Oyigbo and some quarters in NTA area. For several weeks now, Nkpolu flood has sacked several residents as water overflowed the community into East West Road, covering over a kilometer of that major road which has become impassable, disrupting business and destroying properties.
Jane Okoro, who just moved out of Nkpolu, told Sunday Vanguard, “House rent here is now cheapest in Rivers because of the flooding. Imagine sleeping and it begins to rain and you wake up scared because your house is going to be flooded.
“Since the beginning of this week, I have not sold any item because the streets are covered with flood water; customers cannot come here because the water is knee-high.
“It is really embarrassing. This is the home community for several natives. Everybody can’t run away like us who are not indigenes. Government should really help us do something about the flooding.”
Head Chief of Nkpolu-Rumuigbo, Eze Amaehula Chindah, also speaking on the situation, said, “Since the construction of the new road from the boundary of Rumuigbo to Rumuahiolu, the whole water is channeled towards the junction and it does not flow very well. The other part of the road has been occupied by some inhabitants and this does not give room for the passage of natural water.”
Without clearing the drains in Nkpolu Junction, the traditional authority noted, the people’s plight could only get worse with further flooding.
John Amadi, one of worried residents at the bank of the neighborhood canal in Rumuahiolu, said, “Last year our homes were submerged and many of us forced out of their houses. More have run away this year. The canal is a major concern. We are always apprehensive as excess water from the canal always submerges our homes.”
The situation is not different in Oyigbo where many have been sacked by the increasingly rising floods.
Special Duties Commissioner, Onowu, speaking on pre-emptive measures taken ahead of the warning by relevant agencies, said, “Governor Nyesom Wike has approved one IDP camp for Aluu in Ikwerre local government area and another in Ahoada.
“We are looking at about 67,000 persons. We did a memo to the governor which he graciously approved so we can put the camps in order, get mattresses, de-roof and reroof places needed to be fixed and immediately we will begin to evacuate people.
“The governor has warned that he doesn’t want to lose a life to the flood. Properties he noted can be lost and replace, but not life.
“We have visited these high risks localities and the respective local government chairmen have been working with us”.
On his part, Berewari said, “We are trying to educate residents of flood prone areas on how to lessen the effect in case it comes”.
South-South Zonal Director of NEMA, Dr. Martins Ejike, said the agency had put in place action plans on how to tackle the looming disaster.
Ejike, who spoke during a stakeholders’ meeting in Port Harcourt, said, “We did an appraisal of our activities. We will identify areas we have done well and areas we have not. We will identify the resources needed in our activities. Disaster is all about saving lives and all of us have what we do to that regards”.
On self inflicted internal flooding due to careless blockade of major drains and construction on natural drain channels, Prof Rosaline Konya, Rivers State Commissioner for Environment, urged residents to desist from such habits.
Meanwhile, an environmental activist, Meshack Oyi, says Rivers State is not among the states to benefit from the Federal Government N3billion intervention fund on flooding.
The Nigerian Hydrological Service Agency had, in its May Annual Flood Outlook for 2018, allegedly excluded Rivers from the states to be affected by flooding, but the environmental activist maintained that communities in Orashi region of the state are experiencing river flooding and not coastal flooding predicted by the hydrological agency.
He said, “The fund released would not be used to help ameliorate the suffering of people affected in Rivers. I am calling on them to please look at their prediction again to understand that the river flooding they predicted is also affecting Rivers among other states they listed.
“Orashi is a major tributary to the River Niger and the river has overflowed its banks, Orashi has overflowed its banks, hence the flooding of some the communities along the Orashi River. If it continues like this, we could get to the 2012 impact.”
Nigerians were among more than 140 residents injured after Iran launched multiple ballistic missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles at the United Arab Emirates, at the weekend.
This raised fresh fears for thousands of Nigerians living and working in the Gulf nation.
The UAE Ministry of Defence disclosed last Saturday that its air defence systems intercepted several missiles and drones fired from Iran, describing the attack as a major escalation in the ongoing regional tensions.
In a statement posted on its official X handle, the ministry said its air defence units engaged nine ballistic missiles and 33 drones during the latest assault on March 14.
It added that the attacks left six people dead and 141 others injured, including foreign nationals.
“The UAE air defence systems on March 14 engaged nine ballistic missiles and 33 UAVs launched from Iran,” the ministry stated.
“Since the onset of this blatant Iranian aggression, UAE air defences have engaged 294 ballistic missiles, 15 cruise missiles, and 1,600 UAVs launched from Iran,” UAE added.
According to the ministry, those killed in the attacks included citizens of the UAE as well as foreign nationals from Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh.
“Although the authorities did not specify the exact locations where the casualties occurred, the ministry said the injured victims were from several countries, including Nigeria.
Others affected include residents from Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, the Philippines, Pakistan, Iran, India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
The list also included Azerbaijan, Yemen, Uganda, Eritrea, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Bahrain, Comoros, Türkiye, Iraq, Nepal, Oman, Jordan, Palestine, Ghana, Indonesia and Sweden.
The Tide reports that this development has sparked concern among Nigerian communities in the UAE, where thousands of citizens live and work in sectors such as construction, hospitality, logistics and trade.
Data from Nigeria’s diaspora commission shows that the UAE remains one of the largest destinations for Nigerian migrants in the Middle East, particularly in the emirates of Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah.
The Nigerian government had in recent years raised concerns over the safety and welfare of its citizens in the country following diplomatic tensions and visa restrictions affecting Nigerians.
Saturday’s attacks have now heightened anxieties within the diaspora community, especially as the Gulf region faces growing military confrontations.
In its statement, the UAE Ministry of Defence said the country remained fully prepared to confront any threats to its security.
“The Ministry of Defence remains fully prepared and ready to deal with any threats and will firmly confront any attempts to undermine state security in a manner that ensures the protection of its sovereignty, security and stability, and safeguards its national interests and capabilities,” the ministry said.
In a separate update, the ministry noted that its defence systems were still actively intercepting missiles and drones.
“UAE air defences are dealing with Iranian ballistic and cruise missiles and drones,” it said.
Regional media reports indicate that the attacks form part of a wider escalation of hostilities between Iran and Western-backed forces in the Middle East.
According to Al Jazeera, Iran has continued sustained missile and drone strikes across the Gulf despite protests from neighbouring states.
The strikes were said to be in retaliation for military operations launched by the United States and Israel against Iranian positions in the region.
Tehran targeted several Gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE, late on Friday and into Saturday.
The attacks also caused infrastructural damage in parts of the UAE.
Meanwhile, Iran’s elite military wing, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, warned that US interests in the UAE would remain legitimate targets.
Iranian state media reported that the group issued the warning after US forces attacked Iranian-controlled islands.
The IRGC specifically mentioned ports, docks and military installations linked to the United States as potential targets.
It also urged residents in the UAE to evacuate areas around ports and military facilities to avoid civilian casualties.
Security analysts say the growing exchange of threats and strike across the Gulf could destabilise the region’s economic and aviation activities if the conflict escalates further.
Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has yet to issue an official statement on the incident as of the time of filing this report.
Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has charged the five new commissioners sworn-in last Wednesday to put in their best for the development of the State.
Fubara gave the charge during the swearing-in of the commissioners at the Executive Council Chambers of the Government House, Port Harcourt, last Wednesday.
This followed the successful screening of the five commissioners by the Rivers State House of Assembly, last Tuesday.
The five commissioners are Tonye Bellgam, Prof. Temple Nwofor, Dr. Peters Nwagor, Mr. Lekue Kenneth, and Sir Amairigha Edward Hart.
The Tide reports that the governor had sent nine commissioner-nominees to the Assembly for screening, but the Assembly confirmed only five nominees and rejected the nomination of four over various allegations.
Those rejected by the Assembly are Prof. Dantonye Alasia, Mrs. Charity Demua, Mr. Tamuno Williams, and Otonye Amachree.
The governor congratulated the new commissioners on their appointment, noting that their thorough screening by the Rivers State House of Assembly was a proof of their capabilities.
He urged them to deploy their wealth of experience in various fields and put the State on a fast lane of development.
“Ordinarily, I am supposed to charge you on your responsibilities and how to operate. But that has been taken care of by the screening at the Assembly.
“I believe that going through one of the most rigorous screenings, it is enough to say that for those of you who succeeded, you are fit and ready to deliver to our dear State.
“So there is no further charge. The screening was the charge, so I wish you the best as I don’t expect anything less than the best from you,” Fubara said.
The Nigerian Navy has intensified its crackdown on crude oil theft and illegal bunkering, destroying a reactivated illegal refinery site in Rivers State and intercepting suspected stolen petroleum products in Calabar, Cross River State.
The Director of Naval Information, Capt Abiodun Folorunsho, disclosed this in a statement released in Abuja, yesterday.
Folorunsho said personnel of the Nigerian Navy Ship SOROH, operating under Operation DELTA SENTINEL, destroyed a reactivated illegal refinery site at Okolomade Community in Abua-Odual Local Government Area of Rivers State.
He said the action followed credible intelligence that a previously dismantled illegal refining site had resumed operations.
According to him, an Anti–Crude Oil Theft team deployed to the location discovered that the dismantled refining oven had been reconstructed.
“Further exploitation of the area led to the discovery of additional refining equipment and storage facilities containing about 3,000 litres of product suspected to be illegally refined Automotive Gas Oil (AGO),” he said.
Folorunsho added that the illegal refining infrastructure, including ovens, storage tanks, hoses, connected pipes and newly acquired metal components used for illegal refining, was destroyed in line with operational procedures.
He said personnel of the Nigerian Navy Ship Victory, in another operation, intercepted about 3,950 litres of suspected stolen petroleum products at the Nigerian Ports Authority area in Calabar, Cross River State.
He said the interception was based on credible intelligence on suspected siphoning of petroleum products from vessels berthed at the port.
The naval patrol team, according to him, swiftly deployed to the area and traced the illegally siphoned products to a trailer park within the port facility.
“On sighting the naval patrol team, the suspected perpetrators fled the scene, after which the area was cordoned off and the illegally siphoned products secured,” he said.
Folorunsho said further inspection led to the recovery of about 3,950 litres of Automotive Gas Oil stored in drums and jerrycans, which had been evacuated to the naval base for further necessary action in line with extant regulations.
He noted that the successes aligned with the directive of the Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Adm. Idi Abbas, to intensify operations against crude oil theft and other maritime crimes across Nigeria’s maritime domain.
Folorunsho reiterated the Navy’s commitment to sustaining the operational tempo of Operation DELTA SENTINEL through intensified surveillance, patrols and intelligence-driven operations aimed at combating crude oil theft, illegal bunkering and other forms of economic sabotage.
-
News19 hours agoNavy Destroys Illegal Refinery In Rivers, Intercepts Stolen Fuel In C’ River
-
News19 hours agoYou’re The Backbone Of Our Society, Fubara Salutes Mothers On Mothering Sunday
-
Rivers16 hours agoCounty Grammar School Old Boys Elect New Executive
-
Environment16 hours agoIllegal Buildings On Embassies’ Land Will Be Demolished – Wike
-
News19 hours agoODU PLEDGES PARTNERSHIP WITH WACCIMA TO ADVANCE WOMEN’S ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT
-
Business17 hours agoWema Bank Admits 10 Startups into Hackaholics 2026
-
Politics16 hours agoHUNDREDS OF LATE BAYELSA DEP GOV’S KINSMEN DUMP PDP FOR APC
-
News19 hours agoRSNC To Partner Wikimedia In Documenting N’Delta