N9.6bn property damaged in Delta flood -Technical C'ttee

The Technical Committee on Flood Impact Assessment in Delta State, yesterday,  said property destroyed in 12 affected local government areas of the state stood at N9.602 billion.

The report was presented to Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan. Chairman of the committee and Vice Chancellor of Delta State University, DELSU, Abraka, Prof Eric Arubayi, said Uduaghan was the only governor out of the affected states that set up a team of experts to assess the impact of the disaster and advised government on what measures to take to avoid a future occurrence.

The report said, over 57,000 farms, including  cassava, plantain,  poultry, piggery and fish were destroyed by the flood, while over 16, 000 buildings, including mud and block houses, shops and market stalls were also damaged.

The committee recommended short-term and long-term measures to be adopted by the state government, among which were construction of floodwalls, delay action dams, channelization of flood waters, construction of depression/diversion structures and dredging of River Niger.

It, however, said its N9.6 billion estimate was only for tangible assets lost by internally displaced persons, as government required huge sums of money to tackle the damage wreaked by flood in the state.

Receiving the report, Uduaghan, who signed into law, the Delta State Emergency Management Agency Bill, passed by the House of Assembly on the occasion, said he was amazed at the depth of study carried out by the committee.