FG blames climate change for Borno flooding, to upgrade Alau Dam
Issues Red Alert on possible flooding in the South through River Niger, Benue, others
By Abiodun Folarin
Concisedaily Newsonline– The Federal Government of Nigeria has announced plans to upgrade the Alau Dam at Borno State in order to find a lasting solution to the overflowing of the dam.
Speaking at press conference on Friday, Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Prof. Joseph Utsev said that the Alau Dam did not collapsed as it was speculated earlier.
Prof. Utsev explained that the latest flooding in Borno was a result of climate change which lead to heavy down pour with excess water from the tributaries spilling over the Alau Dam.
He said, “It would be recalled that earlier this year (on 16th April,2024), I disseminated to the nation, the expected flood scenarios for the year 2024 through the Annual Flood Outlook (AFO) publication of the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency. The Flood Outlook highlighted the High, Moderate and Low Flood Risk Areas in the country. Borno, Bauchi, Jigawa, Taraba, Yobe, Benue, Gombe, and many others states were among the 31 states listed as high flood risk areas.
“This flood disaster that affected Maiduguri and Jere areas of Borno State was largely due to overflow of water from Alau Dam which is about 10 kilometers from Maiduguri city centre owing to massive inflow from Ngadda river, a major tributary of River Yedzaram.”
While sympathizing with the people of Borno, Yobe, Jigawa, Bauchi and other states affected by flooding, the minister alerted about the possibility of flooding at River Niger and Benue and some of their tributaries.
He said, “The daily flow on these rivers indicates significant increase in flow levels tending towards RED alert.
“This warning means that large volume of water is moving through our rivers down to the delta region. Therefore, we should increase vigilance on all ramifications and step up proactive measures to address any eventual flooding events in the southern part of the country.”
The Minister also warned residence to be mindful of the water they drink, which may be contaminated to avoid further outbreak of waterborne and communicable diseases.
He however, urged all governments at the sub-national level and stakeholders to take heed to the flood early warning information from the Ministry and take proactive measures to forestall future flooding and activate response measures to alleviate the suffering of the citizens that have been affected by flood.
