A day after the report of the impact of floods in Jigawa that left at least 50 people dead and many displaced, victims and relatives of the deceased have shared their horrific experiences.
The disaster, which affected many parts of the state, was felt more by the people of Kafin Hausa Local Government Area, especially those in Balangu town and neighbouring villages.
Balangu town itself has so far recorded no fewer than 20 deaths among those confirmed. The town sits in the northern part of Kafin Hausa LGA.
Unguwar Majema, Kawari, Jarma, Darussalam, Mandamari Sabuwa, Lawanti, Azare Sabuwa, Sabon Gari, Kukajarwa, Dunbulmari, Gamayin and Gumurwa are villages around Balangu that have been mostly affected by floods so far this year.
Zulai Sagiru is battling with the trauma of being rescued from under the rubble of her home that collapsed and killed two of her children.
She had to struggle to speak with Daily Trust from her hospital bed.
“I heard when it started collapsing but before I could get up, it had buried us all. We were seven in the room and that’s how Salisu and Hafiza gave up and were confirmed dead.
“Two people quickly got out and were the ones that called for help for us. Three of us were taken to the hospital and later discharged,” she said.
Daily Trust went round the makeshift internally displaced persons (IDPs) camps that were set up at public schools in the town and the experience of the victims was echoed in similitude.
The displaced persons were observed to be sleeping on mats with no provision of mattresses yet by the state government. Many of them also said they depend on donation of food from residents to survive.
Musa Adamu Balangu, an elderly man and one of the victims who resides at Unguwar Majema, said though the flooding has become a yearly experience for them in the area, they have never witnessed one as devastating as the last few days’.
“It has been a sad and unforgettable moment in our lives; we have witnessed flooding but not like this one.
“All of our houses were submerged. If you stand up, the water level reaches the chest, some to their waist, others around their laps. We pray this will never happen again,” he said.
Adamu appealed to the government and concerned authorities to come to their aid.
Tabale Muhammad Balangu is taking shelter with her children at a school building along with hundreds of others.
She said, “This is the worst moment of our lives; we have no place to call home, no food and no shelter. We are now squatting at a school; hopeless, as you can see.
“We are all here with our children suffering, with no clue as to where to start from.
“It happened in the middle of the night when everybody was resting. That’s how we all ran out here and spent the rest of the night sandwiched here.
“We are appealing to the government to extend help so we can rebuild hope and our homes,” she added.
Another victim, Isuhu Maizana, a grandfather, while sitting with other victims at a temporary camp, said he could only attribute what happened to the will of God.
However, he lamented that hunger, lack of shelter and where to call home are their major challenges at the moment.
“We have been here for around three weeks now. All our homes have collapsed, we have nowhere to go to now and you can see where we are living.
“In this school alone, we are about 300 or more taking refuge here. Life has become more difficult and backward for us. You can see us, our children and grandchildren all living in a school,” he said.
In the streets of Balangu, Daily Trust observed that the water level was still high with many buildings submerged.
Daily Trust gathered that the recent disaster started some weeks ago when there was a heavy downpour and all water routes began to overflow onto the streets and eventually residential buildings, rousing people from their sleep into a state of dispair.
Residents said heavy rainfall triggered the overflowing of the streams and rivers around the area.
Daily Trust observed that it was still raining on Monday with people going about their daily activities drenched.
“Flooding is now a common thing in villages around here. The effect of the flood is enormous. As you can see, all these houses have been submerged since the beginning of this year’s rainy season,” said a commercial driver, Salisu Haruna.
Speaking on the situation, the village head of Balangu, Ibrahim Shehu, who spoke on behalf of the district head, Ibrahim Suleiman, said the flood has destroyed over 300 to 400 houses within the area alone.
“Around 400 households are now displaced. People are helpless and unclear of what to do,” he said.
When asked about the cause of the annual dilemma, he said, the town has excess water and improper channels that will take the water out.
“We need drainage control that will give the overflowing water direction. We also have issues with soil erosion which is contributing to the development.
“We are doing our best to reach out to the government and we hope it will heed to our calls,” he said.
We have started distribution of relief materials – SEMA
The Executive Secretary, Jigawa State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Yusuf Sani Babura, said the agency is working round the clock to identify and access affected areas.
He said all arrangements are in place to begin distribution of relief materials to the displaced households.
“Already, we have started giving out food items to the flood victims we earlier earmarked and we are working towards identifying others that we are yet to reach.
“Those ones we recently had on our list will start receiving theirs by tomorrow (Tuesday),” he said.
He added that the agency has received relief materials from the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) ranging from food items to building materials.
