The victims who only started to jubilate a few days ago when water
astarted receding are now wondering if at all they could ever return
to their houses.
Although, some houses had collapsed into
the flood, others that were not seriously affected are likely not fit
for immediate inhabitation by its former occupants who fled their abodes
for their lives.
Weekly Trust gathered that dangerous animals have taken refuge in the deserted homes occasioned by the devastating flood.
The Nigerian Red Cross Society (NCRS)
said on its website that “A lot of people have been displaced. Snakes,
crocodiles and hippos have been displaced and are ending up in people’s
homes. Everyone has been displaced,” it said.
Helen Ogar who is being sheltered at the
government designated displaced peoples camp in Wadata area of Makurdi
alongside her four children said she was scared out of her apartment in
the Wadata suburb by snakes that have infested the house.
“I went to my house a few days ago to
tidy up the environment but I couldn’t enter because I saw snakes
everywhere through the windows.
“Some of the snakes were even hanging on
the ceilings. The room itself emits a very strong smell which could
have been caused by the dirty flood water. I had to run for my dear life
as I paddled the canoe that I came with as fast as my strength could
carry me,” Ogar said.
Another displaced victim, James Ameh,
20, son of a police man who along with his siblings and mother found a
space at the Wurukum camp, noted that he had in the company of
neighbours affected by flood returned home to clear their houses after
observing that the water has receded drastically but was shocked to be
confronted by big snakes.
“I had followed some colleagues here to
see whether we can tidy up the place when we discovered that the water
has started going down, on entering the house what we saw was amazing,
it was a big snake in one of the rooms,” he narrated.
Since then Ameh has remained at the camp
with his other siblings until last Monday, when he and other neigbours
attempted the sanitation adventure to reclaim their homes, but were
forced to retreat by the daring poisonous creatures.
“Snakes hung on the ceiling, so we ran
back, that was two days ago. When I told my father, he said, we should
remain here (camp) until government asks us to go.”
The story is the same in all the
affected parts of Makurdi town, Agatu, Guma, Logo and Gwer West local
government areas respectively.
In Agatu local government area where
many of the communities are said to have been submerged, there is little
hope for the victims to reclaim any of their residential houses.
The caretaker chairman of the local
council, Victor Momoh had told journalists the whereabouts of some
families who lost their lives while trying to flee flood disaster area
was still unknown. While the bodies from a capsized boat in the area
were yet to be recovered as the water is yet to recede significantly.
Weekly Trust learnt from other residents
in Makurdi that the fear of reptiles is now major sources of worry
unless the government rises to the challenge to salvage the situation,
“this might just be another death trap,” a resident Terhumba Hir
opined.
“We were so happy two days ago when we
discovered that the water is going down, but when we entered our houses,
crocodiles and snakes are there. I even heard some people saying they
have seen hippopotamus in their own apartments,” he said.
However, the Director-General of
National Agency for Food, Drugs Administration Control (NAFDAC), Dr.
Paul Orhii had early the week warned residents not to return to their
houses without relevant authorities certifying their safety.
Orhii who gave the warning when he
donated food items, drugs worth N5 million to victims of flood disaster
in Makurdi, urged them to accept their fate as the will of God.
According to him, NAFDAC had visited the
camp to access the quality of water, food and drugs made available to
the people by government, individuals and donor agencies.
He added that appropriate arrangements are underway to rehabilitate the victims.
Also, the Executive Secretary of State
Emergency Management Agency, Adikpo Agbtase, urged the victims to remain
where they are until government permits them to do otherwise.
“We can’t identify how many of such
houses were affected until the water recedes. We are already planning
for a team to go out on assessment when the water finally recedes. By
that time, residents would stand by their houses to provide needed
information to the team which will enable us to quantify the loses.
“We have pleaded with the victims to
move away, because the flood had come in with dangerous reptiles that
could cause them harm. For the sake of airborne diseases, it is better
to quit such contaminated environment. After the flood, we will fumigate
the places. We are already planning ahead to disinfect the affected
areas,” Agbtase concluded.
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