John Charles, Makurdi
Many houses in the Makurdi metropolis were in the early hour of Sunday submerged following a four-hour downpour.
The rain, which started around 11.56 pm on Saturday and lasted till 4.08am Sunday morning, rendered many people homeless.
The devastating effect of the flood was recorded in the following areas: Zone 4, Atusa, Nyiman, and some areas of Wadatta, Gana, all in Makurdi, the capital of Benue State.
A resident of Nyiman and a mother of two, Ms Jane Iorhember, told our correspondent that the surging water woke her up around 2.30am to discover that the area had been flooded.
She said, ‘I did not know the actual time the rain started but I woke up when felt something cold in my body only to discover that the mattress was already soaked, this was around 2.30am.
“At this time, there was no light so I put on my torch light and tiptoed to the living room where the whole area was flooded and I peeped outside only to behold the whole compound already flooded and water was flowing into the living room.
“I rushed and woke up my kids in case of any eventuality; we tried to pack some perishable items like electronics into one of the rooms until the rain subsided around 4am. You can see that the water is gradually receding from the living room”, Jane said.
It was a similar experience for Mrs Kajo in Nyiman. When our correspondent visited the area, he saw their property outside their house.
“You can see our property outside because the rooms are already flooded; we will remain like this until the water recedes.”
A worker at the state House of Assembly, Mr Tikili Simon, who spoke to our correspondent at Zone 4, called on the state government to construct drainages in the flooded areas.
He said the flooding in Zone 4 and other places were largely caused by the lack of drainage.
He said, “If you move from here to Atusa and the FADAMA area in Nyima which links Gana down to rail track along Barracks Road, they are not conducive because there are no drainages.”
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