31 states, 148 LGs risk flooding

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has said that 31 states and 148 LGAs in Nigeria are under threat of flooding this rainy season.

The agency, therefore, urged state governments in flood-prone regions to endorse its initiative of downscaling early flood warnings and implementing risk mitigation strategies to safeguard lives and livelihoods.

NEMA said the downscaling and dissemination of the 2024 early warning strategies would bolster effective preparedness, measures and actions to mitigate disasters during floods.

Speaking at a one-day sensitisation meeting with the Edo State Government and other stakeholders on the 2024 early warning strategies for early actions in Benin, the Director General of NEMA, Zubaida Umar, emphasised the need for synergy with the Edo State Government to establish mechanisms for flood disaster preparedness and risk reduction to prevent flood-related disasters.

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Zubaida, represented by Daniel Obot, Director of Disaster Risk Reduction, highlighted the urgency of the sensitisation meeting in response to the 2024 flood alert issued by the National Meteorological Agency (NiMet) and the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA).

She explained that, “Thirty-one states with 148 LGAs have been predicted to be within high flood risk areas, while 35 states, including the FCT, with 249 LGAs, are considered to fall within moderate flood risk areas. The remaining 377 LGAs are forecasted for low flood risk areas.

“These flood risk areas are presented with their degree of vulnerability to serve as a guide for government at all levels to develop risk reduction measures to avert disaster losses during this rainy season.”