Three children dead in ravaging flood in Delta communities

No fewer than three children have reportedly died in a flooding that ravaged communities in Warri North council area of Delta state.

The children, a girl and two boys, belonged to two families.
They were identified as Annabel, two years old, Gift, two years, and Praise-God who was five years old.

The bereaved parents told newsmen, who visited the community at the weekend, that they lost their children to the flood.

It wad gathered that the children, who had reportedly stepped out to play, somehow fell in the swelling waters and were washed away only to be discovered dead later.

Mr David Suku, who lost two of his children, Gift and Praise-God, to the disaster within two months said: “The water was too much, so as the child fell into the water nobody was around. Before we could find him, he was already dead.

“The last flood, one died, this one another one has died, if there is anything government can do for us, they should do it. Losing a second child to the flood is too much for me.”

His wife, Doris Suku, in tears and narrating how it happened said: “I was at home when the child went out to play. I thought he was at my brother’s wife’s place. I didn’t see him, so I went to ask them.

“They said he had returned home and I told them, no I haven’t seen him. We looked for him. It was in the morning, we saw him already dead.”

The father of another family, Mr Enoch Kane, recalled the tragic day he lost his daughter.

“She died on August 16. I lost my daughter to the flood. She walked to the backyard, unknowing to me and fell into the the water.

“We looked for her, only to find her in the water, already dead. She was two years old and wasn’t used to swimming.”

However, the community has called on the federal government to urgently direct Chevron Nigeria Limited to dredge the inland waterways, while bemoaning the loss of lives to the flood.

The people- bearing placards with inscriptions such as “no farm, no food because of flood. Government help us; government come to our aid, flood has damaged our properties; flood has damaged all our church instruments,” charged government at all levels as well as the international community to intervene.

Secretary General of Polobubo national council, Mr. Midwest Kukuru, described the development as “agonizing, harrowing and disturbing,” further accusing Chevron of being responsible for the flood disaster.

He explained that the river in the community used to be a “very deep fresh water habitat until few years after the advent of oil companies, particularly Chevron.

“We began to have these problems. This problem is caused by Chevron as a result of the canal that was dug into the Atlantic Ocean.

“The silts from the ocean come through the canal and are deposited in this river. During dry season this river is less than one meter.

“Because it is silted, when the rain falls the water has nowhere to go than to begin to overflow the banks, go into houses and begin to cause problems. This in a nutshell is the cause of it.

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“We are appealing to the governments, local, state, federal and even the world, to prevail on Chevron to open up this our river for us.

The supposed jetty point submerged in the flood

“First of all, block that canal that they dug to the Atlantic ocean, then dig the whole of this river. Get it to the normal depth that it was before.

“Then, there are areas they need to fill with sand for this community to relocate to because we have study reports that say that the whole of the community is sitting below sea level.”

It was also gathered that the community’s primary school, Miyen Primary School, was not spared in the onslaught.

A teacher, Alice Gbalubi, lamented the ordeal that teachers and learners have been subjected to since resumption.

She said: “As you can see, the school is flooded with water. We have resumed but the pupils learn on water.

“They stand because we don’t have chairs as you can see. Before the close of the school, many get colds, fever and vomit.

“Even teachers cannot dress properly because of the water. We don’t wear shoes but walk barefooted.

“Most times, their (pupils) books fall on water and get destroyed. We want government and Chevron to come to our aid.”

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