Lagos Floods: Residents, businesses count their losses

With many of the victims of the recent flood disaster in Lagos relocated to a relief camp and some still fighting marooned The victims of the recent ALEX CHIEJINA write that it would take some time before business activities would be restored in the affected areas

Cletus Attah had always been the envy of his contemporaries. His shop in Ikorodu area of Lagos had a rich display of all kinds of foodstuffs which he stocked in sacks. And with a large customer base frequently thronging his shop, Attah became a happy- go- lucky trader who regularly smiled to the bank.

But that was before the floods came and swept away his shop and his residence that was just behind the shop. Today he is an emotional wreck; helpless, homeless and denied of a place in the relief camp set up by Lagos State government to temporary cater for the victims of the flood disaster.

For Attah, and many others living in Ajegunle in Ikorodu area of Lagos as well as in such communities as Mile 12, Ikosi Ketu Owode Elede, Thomas Laniyan Estate, Owode Onirin, Agboyi Ketu, Owode Orile, Odo Ogun, Itowoloa and Agiliti, both in Lagos and Ogun State, this is definitely not the best of times.

They are still reliving their experience with the recent floods that had submerged residential, commercial buildings with massive loss of household items, and schools. Children and adults had to swim through flooded roads to get out of their houses. Those who could not swim had to hire canoes.

Some community folks who spoke to journalists assessing the impact of the flood said that though flooding in the communities had been a regular occurrence since 2007, the current flooding which started early October 2010 has remained their worst experience. The situation was occasioned by the release of excess water from Oyan Dam by Ogun State River Basin Authority and enhanced precipitation. On the other hand, the River Basin Authority said the release of the water was targeted at stopping the dam from bursting following incessant rains which had made the facility take in more water than required.

Not only has the recent flooding left scores of residents in these communities homeless, business activities in the flood-ravaged areas may take a long time to come alive again as workers and business people gradually come to terms with the situation.

Already, businesses worth millions of naira have done down with the flood. The inability of many to run their daily businesses, among other hardship, has turned the affected residents into refugees in their own land. When Business Day visited the affected communities last week lock-up shops, private schools, several companies, and houses were still under lock and key as the owners have been forced to relocate temporarily.

At Owode Elede, a popular livestock market near Ojodu-Berger, it was discovered that the surge has almost completely overran the market and forced livestock owners to move their cows and goats to safer areas. The market which used to be a bee-hive of activity is now like a ghost of itself.

At Odogun Oniyanrin in Ajegunle, known for its huge number of upholstery makers, it was learnt that most of the traders were taken unawares by the flood. This is due to the fact that only a few were seen trying to salvage some of their chairs and tables that were not ruined by the flood. They lamented their fate as they moved their drenched cushioned seats out of the lock-up shops for sun-drying.

At Ojodu-Berger, virtually all the state-owned and private schools on either side of the Lagos/Ibadan Expressway close to the Lagos Toll Gate are shut following the pool of water which has made it impossible for both pupils and teachers alike to gain access to the schools.

Speaking to BusinessDay, Ikedioha James, an Upholstery maker at Owode-Elede near Ojodu-Berger said "I have never seen flooding like this in all my life. It was a surprise to me that the lockup shop that I left the day before the flooding was totally covered by water when I returned a day after and all the cushioned chairs and wood for my work were totally soaked in water. Since the incident I have depended on goodwill of the public to feed. Government should come to our rescue"

In the meantime, activities at the usually bustling markets like the Mile 12, Agiliti, as well as supermarkets, shops and restaurants have either been halted or scaled down considerably. Yemisi Oyeleke, a trader said she had never seen Mile 12 dry like this ever since the flood began.

"Trading is not moving as usual ever since the flood enveloped some of the neighbouring communities. It is as though people are in a mourning period. No doubt, business has not been flourishing. I am contemplating whether to suspend coming to the market until things improve," Oyeleke revealed.

The same goes for Joy Omame, a trader at Odogun Oniyanrin Community area of Mile 12 who disclosed that the flood had affected her trading in foodstuff as people, many of them having host their possession, are no longer in a position to maintain their patronage. According to her, "my greatest dilemma is the plan of the Lagos State government to demolish our buildings. I was born and brought up here and my grandparents lived here; so how can we leave here because of the dam which was not here when we started living here. Breaking our houses is not the solution. The solution is the upgrading and reconstruction of the Odogun Road which leads to Mile 12. "

Apparently disenchanted, Babatunde Owolabi, a livestock seller in Odogun Oniyanrin community told Business Day that it would be almost impossible for him to recover from the misfortune: "My wife and three children are at the Agbowa relief camp and it pains me to see what they feed them there. Most of my property got missing in the confusion that followed the flood so I am already at a loss but we have no option because my business is already ruined. Water is supposed to be a blessing but this one is the action of man and it has brought destruction".

It will be recalled that about a fortnight ago, President Goodluck Jonathan approved the sum of N2.1 billion to victims of the recent flood disasters in Lagos, Ogun and Jigawa states in a view to mitigate the effects of the disaster. Each state was to receive the sum of 700 million Naira.

While sympathising with the victims in Isheri Olofin community in Ogun state and Ajegunle community in Lagos state, President Jonathan assured them that apart from the cash assistance, the federal government was assembling a team of experts to undertake a comprehensive study of the recurring floods with a view to finding a permanent solution to the recurring problem of floods.

No doubt, some of the destruction could have been avoided or its effects mitigated if proper environmental rules had been observed and the authorities had not been lax in enforcing building codes. In some parts of the country, flooding has become something of a seasonal occurrence during the rainy season. As such, communities often prepare for the impacts of such floods, and take precautionary measures.

As is the case with some parts of Lagos, areas prone to flooding have blocked drainages and waterways, and absence of proper drainage system. Sadly, either by design or default, permits are given to developers to erect structures that interfere with waterways.

Given the discomfort being suffered by the residents whose communities were ravaged by the flood, many people have called on Lagos and Ogun State governments as well as concerned federal institutions to adequately provide for them in their time of need.

James wants the Ogun/Osun River Basin Authority to "some extent take responsibility for the disaster and compensate the impacted people and imbibe international best practices in its operations to forestall recurrence of the flood incident."
However, Tony Akanbe, a Ketu resident who was not really affected by the flood believes that members of the communities also have a role to play in guarding against similar damage in the future.

"Community leaders have a role to play in guiding the people to imbibe good environmental habits. They could do this by assisting municipal authorities propagate information about the need to keep drainages provided in the community free of dumps that might clog the waterways and cause flooding during the rains. More importantly, municipal authorities should ensure they construct culverts, drainage channels and storm drains in the cities, and provide an efficient refuse disposal system that would lessen the tendency among residents to dump domestic waste in water passages, thereby blocking them."