There seems to be no respite for communities in Bauchi as almost each local government in the state has at least one community ravaged by floods on a yearly basis. Federal highways are not left writes, ISHOLA MICHAEL.
Every year, during the rainy season, communities across Bauchi State live in fear of flooding. These communities are prone to flooding due to the fact that they reside along waterways or close to rivers which often overflow.
Almost all the 20 local government areas of the state have at least one community prone to intense flooding that washes away houses, farmlands, domestic animals and in some serious cases, human beings.
In this year’s rainy season, the story has remained the same as victims have been left counting their losses due to the flood disasters that have ravaged through the various communities leaving behind, tales of woes and anguish.
Reports available indicate that since the beginning of the 2024 rainy season, no fewer than 20 lives had been lost while assets mostly houses, farmlands and domestic animals worth several millions of naira had been lost to the flood disasters across the state.
Also affected are roads which have been badly damaged, especially federal highways across the state. This has subjected commuters and other road users to untold hardship as they have been forced to seek alternative routes to get to their destination.
Affected federal highways are the Kano – Maiduguri Expressway which has a portion cut off in Azare, Katagum LGA; Bauchi – Kano Road and Bauchi – Gombe Road. These are very critical roads that link the state to the rest of the subregions.
Available records revealed that worst hit by the devastating perennial floods is Cheledi, a community in Kirfi LGA, there the victims are going through severe economic and emotional challenges after losing their homes, businesses and livelihoods, plunging the community into deep despair. The path to recovery remains uncertain and victims want permanent solutions.
One of the victims, Maryam Isma’il, a mother of five, narrated how she woke up to the sound of rushing flood water at night in July this year in Cheledi, an agrarian community in Kirfi local government of Bauchi State.
Her family scrambled to safety, leaving everything behind. Their home, a small mud-brick house, was no match for the flood.
They lost their belongings, clothes and furniture, just as the family’s small farm was also destroyed with crops, nearing harvest, being washed away.
Maryam’s husband, a local trader, was hit hard as the flood destroyed his shop. With no home and no income, the family was left in despair.
According to her, “As soon as the flood hit, we sought refuge in a makeshift room in one of our brothers’ residences. The conditions there were harsh. My husband sleeps alone under thatch tent. We live apart in this trying moment.”
She added that, “The economic impact on us is severe. We have been living from hand to mouth and have no savings to fall back on. We’re all struggling to survive,” she explained.
Maryam’s story is just one among many among Cheledi victims. Several families have been displaced by the floods.
Similarly, Umar Bala, 35, is a businessman selling building materials. He suffered crippling losses as a result of the flood as his business was completely wiped out by the waters.
“I lost nothing less than N1.5 million in capital,” he said in a despairing voice.
He, however, explained that, “Some people came pretending to help me evacuate but they stole some of my goods instead.” The betrayal added to his already immense loss, leaving him with nothing to rebuild.
Feeding his family has become a daily struggle. “We don’t know where our next meal will come from,” Umar said, frustration evident in his words. The loss of his business has plunged the family into deep uncertainty.
Aid coming to victims like Umar was minimal. “I was given about five measures of rice and 10 packs of spaghetti,” Umar recalled. “But how can that be enough?” With two wives and nine children to care for, the small amount of aid was far from sufficient.”
Both Maryam and Umar amplify the untold story of Cheledi flood victims whose conventional ways of living were completely ruined.
Maryam’s struggle to protect her family and keep her marriage coupled with Umar’s loss of business and livelihood, epitomise the deep economic and emotional toll the flood has taken.
Also, their stories are not just personal tragedies; they represent the broader suffering of a community left to fend for itself with minimal aid, facing an uncertain future in the wake of flood disasters.
In July this year, flooding destroyed about 210 houses in Cheledi. Families sought shelter in public schools and makeshift rooms in a few unaffected houses in the community.
Several hectares of farmlands were submerged and this poses threat to food security in the area.
Similarly, data obtained from the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) in Bauchi shows that in 2023, flooding destroyed about 400 houses and 300 farms in Cheledi.
Auwal Cheledi lamented about the recurring floods in the area.
He said the overflow of a local stream has been the main cause. “The dam was supposed to protect us,” Auwal said, “but it failed.”
Each time the flood occurs, it leaves behind a trail of destruction. Sand is deposited on farms and roads, making them difficult to use. The flooding has also caused severe gully erosion on farms.
“Our farmland is being eaten away. Cheledi is an agrarian community known for farming for generations. Each time residents of Cheledi notice cloud formation, they become restless out of the fear of the unknown if it eventually rains,” he added.
Also, flood submerged half of Gadiya village in Gamawa Local Government Area of the state destroying about 200 houses, and washing away over 300 farmlands, leaving the villagers stranded.
The village head of Gadiya, Alhaji Yau Umar, said that over 100 people became refugees in his palace and hundreds of others used mosques, schools as temporary shelters. He added that over 200 people lost their homes and over 300 farms were submerged by the flood.
The village head appealed to the government and philanthropists to come to their aid.
A resident, Amina Gadiya, who spoke to newsmen via telephone, said the flood destroyed almost half of the village because most of the houses were made of mud.
She also said that many farmlands belonging to the villagers were washed away and expressed concern over what she termed “the state government’s nonchalant attitude to the plight of Gadiya people and surrounding communities.”
She said they were facing a crisis of lack of food, shelter and clothes as many people in the village lost their means of livelihoods. “Our children are crying because of hunger,” she said.
She appealed to fellow Nigerians to keep the villagers in their prayers for divine intervention, adding that kindhearted people should come forward to assist them in whatever ways they could to put an end to the sufferings.
Some residents said they could not sleep for many days before they were eventually sacked from their abodes by the flood.
Residents revealed that that the men in the village spent several hours rescuing women, children and those trapped in collapsed houses as emergency rescue from authorities were absent.
The State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), however, confirmed the death of seven people as flood persisted in some communities of the state.
The Director-General of the agency, Mas’ud Aliyu, made the confirmation in an interview with journalists on the lingering flooding in the state. He explained that the deaths occurred in flood-ravaged communities of Shira, Giade and Katagum Local Government Areas of Bauchi State.
According to him, “Giade, Katagum, and Shira Local Government Areas are the LGs most disturbed by the flood. This has led to the state government sending a delegation under the leadership of the secretary to state government, commissioners of the ministries of Humanitarian Affairs, of Housing and Environment and of Finance, and the director-general of SEMA to assess the areas affected.”
The DG added that in the three local governments, large farmlands had been occupied by the flood saying that, “The flood has destroyed the houses of many people. In Giade, there is no loss of life, only farms, animals, and other domestic materials. In Shira, farms were lost as well as houses. Three persons died. Then, in Katagum Local Government Area, farmlands and houses were destroyed and one individual was lost.”
According to him, the lives lost were a result of a building collapse, as well as the flood submerging the deceased. He also counted a collapsed bridge as part of the destruction caused by the flood, leaving travellers stranded.
Mas’ud said, “In Katagum, there is a road cut off on the way to Bulkachuwa, and another road from Azare to Jama’are. Likewise, there are two road collapses on the Azare to Giade and another road from Shira to Azare which may collapse any moment from now.”
He restated that thousands of hectares of farmland were submerged by the flood.
The SEMA director-general urged residents of the state residing in waterways to vacate their houses as there were more flood threats in many areas, stressing that, “All those in waterways and areas with a history of flood should do themselves the favour of vacating their houses.”
Worried by the devastating effect of the flood on federal roads in the state, the Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, visited the damaged portions of the roads to assess the extent of the damage to enable government to take urgent steps to ameliorate the hardship.
The minister expressed sadness over the untold hardship commuters and other users were subjected to as they were forced to take longer routes to get to their destination.
It was, however, projected that between June and August 2024, half of Bauchi State population will be in the minimal phase of flood disaster if adequate Humanitarian assistance does not get to them urgently and promptly.
The projection was revealed by a Chief Agriculture and Nutrition Desk Officer, Bauchi State Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mahmood Umar Bala based on the current flood disaster situation in the state.
Mahmood Bala also said that between March and May 2024, no local government area in Bauchi State was classified in phase four which is emergency and phase five that is famine.
According to him over 700,000 persons are in the crisis phase, while some two million people are in stress phase.
He therefore stressed the need for governments at all levels in the country to invest in climate smart agriculture, agroecology practices and efficient irrigation systems that can improve the resilience of farmers to withstand environmental and climate shocks.
The recommendation was contained in his presentation titled, ‘Cadre Harmonise: Analysis and Identification of Areas at Risk and Populations Affected by Food and Nutrition Insecurity in 26 States of Nigeria and the FCT’ at the State Committee on Food and Nutrition (SCFN) second quarter meeting held in Bauchi, recently.
The report recommended that government should implement social protection law using the social register to identify and support conflict affected households and vulnerable persons.
He also stressed the need to reposition agricultural sector with focus on the mechanisation of agriculture in Bauchi, subsidised fertiliser, pesticide, herbicide and other farming inputs.
The Cadre Harmonise is a unifying consensual and rigorous tool that helps to produce relevant and transparent analysis of food and nutrition security situations.
The meeting was to strengthen the coordination mechanism of SCFN for the delivery of multi-sectoral intervention approach to nutrition in the state.
It was also to assess the performance of nutrition indicators for better tracking of efforts and subsequent decisions making towards addressing the identified gaps and challenges.
Chairman of the Committee and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Budget, Economic Planning and Multilateral Coordination, Jibrin Yusuf said that the state is passionate about improving the nutrition status of the citizens.
He added that all decisions from the meeting will be channel to the SCFN where policies are developed tailored towards addressing malnutrition.
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