Nigeria Flooding Kills More Than 100

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

ABUJA (Worthy News) – More than 100 people have died and several others remained missing as predawn rain unleashed flooding in the central Nigerian state of Niger, authorities said Friday.

Most were killed in Mokwa as floods submerged this market town after the rains began Wednesday night and continued into Thursday morning, according to witnesses.

Ibrahim Audu Hussein, a spokesperson for the state emergency management agency, said in published remarks that rescue efforts were still underway.

“We have so far recovered 115 bodies, and more are expected to be recovered because the flood came from far distance and washed people into the River Niger. Downstream, bodies are still being recovered,” Husseini told the AFP news agency. “So, the toll keeps rising.”

More than 3,000 houses were submerged, he added.

Mokwa, about 230 miles (370 kilometers) west of Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, is a commercial hub in Niger state, with many traders and heavy-duty vehicles often carrying goods to other regions.

MORE HEAVY STORMS

In Nigeria, the rainy season usually runs from April to October, and warnings of more difficult weather have been issued.

On Wednesday, the Nigerian Meteorological Agency forecasted heavy storms for Abuja and 14 of the country’s 36 states, including Niger.

That weather pattern was also expected to add to the suffering faced by Christian farmer and evangelist Paul Jongas in Abuja. “Please pray for me and my family. All my family members recently woke up with a malaria fever attack due to a lack of electricity, which attracted many mosquitoes,” he told Worthy News.

Communities in northern Nigeria have been experiencing prolonged dry spells and excessive rainfall, which has led to severe flooding during the brief wet season.

It was unclear how the flooding and more rain in Niger, Nigeria’s largest state by landmass, would impact its three major dams – Kainji, Jebba, and Shiroro – which contribute to the country’s electricity grid. A fourth dam is under construction.

Officials said the state has been prone to flooding in recent times.

DAM DESTROYED

In April, water reportedly released from one of the dams destroyed more than 5,000 farms in 30 communities, including in Mokwa. Local news reports suggested it was the sixth flood in the state this year.

In 2022, floods in Nigeria killed more than 600 people, displaced about 1.4 million, and destroyed 440,000 hectares of farmland, according to authorities.

Some experts blame the flooding and related death toll on global warming linked to “climate change,” but others suggest that intense building and poor infrastructure are contributing factors.

The flooding added to misery in a nation where, over the last five weeks, over 300 Nigerians, including army personnel and civilians, were killed in northeastern Nigeria by Boko Haram, designated as an Islamic terror group by authorities.

Many Christians are believed to be among the victims.

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