115 perish as floods submerge Niger’s Mokwa town

•FG mourns, mobilises relief efforts

AT least 115 people have been reported dead after floods submerged Mokwa, a market town in Niger State, on Thursday, an official said.

Head of the operations office in Minna, the state capital, Husseini Isah, said that many more are still at risk, with rescue efforts underway on Friday.

“The number keeps rising,” Isah told The Associated Press.

AP and the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) reported that the floods were triggered by torrential rains that lasted several hours.

According to local reports quoting residents and local government officials, a dam collapse in a nearby town worsened the situation.

Mokwa is a major meeting point for traders from the South and food growers in the North.

BBC quoted officials as saying that at least 110 people died in floods while some residents told Saturday Tribune that residents said no fewer than 115 deaths had been recorded.

The rainfall lasted for several hours, said the head of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (Nsema), Abullahi Baba-Arah.

He added that “surging floodwater submerged and washed away over 50 residential houses with their occupants”.

According to Nsema, the Tiffin Maza and Anguwan Hausawa districts of Mokwa town were worst affected.

Mokwa’s District Head, Muhammad Shaba Aliyu, said it has been “60 years” since the community had suffered this kind of flooding.

“I beg the government to support us,” Mr Aliyu said.

Meanwhile, the federal government has condoled with the families and victims of the disaster.

In a statement on Friday in Abuja, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris, said, “Our thoughts and prayers are with the bereaved families and all those affected by this tragic event.

“President Bola Tinubu has been fully briefed on the situation and has directed all relevant emergency and security agencies to intensify ongoing search and rescue operations.

“The immediate priority of the Federal Government is to save lives and provide urgent relief to survivors.

“The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), in collaboration with the Nigerian Armed Forces and the Niger Government is working round the clock to ensure that no effort is spared in bringing help to those in need.”

Idris commended the courage and dedication of first responders and volunteers, who were risking their lives in the ongoing rescue efforts.

He urged residents in the affected areas to cooperate fully with emergency officials and adhere to all evacuation directives that are issued.

“The Federal Government extends its heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims. In this moment of grief, the nation stands united with them in solidarity.”

This is the start of the rainy season in Nigeria.

Many parts of the North experienced heavy rainfall and flooding in 2024 which caused deaths, displacement of people and destruction of houses and infrastructure.

The country also suffered severe flooding in 2022, which forced around 1.3 million people out of the homes and caused more than 600 deaths.

In a similar occurrence last September, torrential rains and a dam collapse in Maiduguri, Borno State, caused severe flooding, leaving at least 30 people dead and displacing millions, worsening the humanitarian crisis caused by the Boko Haram insurgency.

Nigeria often faces seasonal floods, particularly impacting communities along the banks of the Niger and Benue Rivers.

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