ANSG, NEMA Save 8,000 Buildings From Collapse In Onitsha

The proactive criteria taken by the Anambra State Government following a warning by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) have saved over 8,000 buildings from imminent collapse following the dredging and distilling of the Sakamori drain and Nwangene River in Onitsha.

The buildings that were located on the fringe of the waterways and sewage canals were to be affected by the warnings of the National Emergency Management Agency NEMA which warned that they were already submerged by sewage as the foundation has been threatened. 

NEMA had earlier this year raised alarm about the impending flood disaster by advising residents in the affected area to make sustained efforts by either relocating to safe areas or distilling and dreading the sewage canals.

According to Anambra state Deputy Governor Dr Onyekachukwu Ibezim who is also the Chairman of the Anambra Flood Response Committee and the Flood Management Committee, several buildings have been saved by these activities and the number could be over 8,000 including areas that have nucleated settlements.

Onyekachi said: “What we are doing now is to take proactive measures ahead of the Impending flooding according to the National Emergency Management Agency NEMA and today you can see a free flow of sewage and we have cleared the mountain of refuse dumps that have been blocking the canals and drains.

“So far the areas include the Sakamori that is being dredged as well as the Federal Housing Estate and the Creek road, Ochanja linking Nwangene discharging into the River Niger”

“We have also done a similar thing at the Premier Brewery and the Porthacourt road and the other side towards the church owned by one Odumeje ” he said.

Ibezim however lamented that one of the causes of flooding in Onitsha and the River line communities is the human activities of the residents of the area.

He said: “It is a fact that Anambra is always affected by the perennial flooding but if the canals and waterways are not blocked by refuse produced by the residents of the area the effects would be minimized drastically.

“So it also behoves on the people in those areas to ensure effective disposal of refuse and clearing of the drains for free flow of sewage.

“The Ministry of Environment has been on top of it all by providing vehicles for the evacuation of refuse and the housing units should endeavor to get a synergy with the Ministry of Environment in that regard,” he said.