A large number of residents have been rescued from severe flooding in Maiduguri by Borno State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA).
The Director-General of SEMA, Barkindo Mohammed, made this known on Friday in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Maiduguri.
“As of 5 pm on Thursday, SEMA evacuated 3,683 persons from their homes in a rescue operation. The search was rescue operation is still ongoing.
“The mode of rescue involves motorists boats, canoes, divers, military and fire service trucks among others.
“As the water continues to recede, we are concentrating on those who make distressed calls and will start search and rescue today and tomorrow,” Mohammed said.
According to him, about two million people were affected and so far SEMA has opened 14 official camps and many informal camps where displaced persons can go. He said that the Federal Government has supported the state with ₦3 billion and food consignments.
“President Bola Tinubu has supported Borno and other states with ₦3billion each.
“The Gov. Babagana Zulum State has forwarded the money to SEMA and he has added more on what the federal government gave.
“We are not only responding to the flood victims in Maiduguri but also in Local Government Areas across the state,” Mohammed added.
NAN reports that the collapse of the Alau dam on the Ngadda River in Borno on Tuesday caused some of the state’s worst flooding and forced residents to flee their homes.
The state government said on Wednesday that the dam was at capacity due to unusually high rains. Officials expected the death toll to rise.
News Agency of Nigeria
