It was a devastating moment for residents of Osogbo, the capital of Osun, yesterday, as a four-hour torrential rainfall caused flooding which destroyed houses.
At the affected areas, victims were seen sun-drying their soaked properties, while others battled to salvage what remained of their property.
The state government was also making efforts to reconstruct the collapsed fence as some bricklayers and other building artisans were sighted at Government House, which was covered with a blue-coloured leather while repair went on.
At Awosuru area the flood, also damaged a bridge and washed away some parts of residential buildings. Officials of Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) drafted to the area, had a hectic day controlling traffic as the incident compounded traffic snarl being witnessed in Osogbo since the commencement of the flyover project at Olaiya.
Meanwhile, some of the affected business persons at Oke-Baale area, who spoke, blamed Osun State Government for their misfortune.
They claimed the government failed to construct a bigger bridge at Oke-Baale and whenever it rained, the bridge could not contain the flood. They appealed for government’s interventions on their damaged wares.
“We have really lost a lot due to the flood, we plead with the government to come to our aid,” Mr. Musba Adegbola, a resident said
A shop owner at Onireke area, Mr. Ishola Mutiu, said the flood would have swept people away while trying to salvage their goods.
Mutiu, who sells electronic, said: “I was in my shop when the rain started but I didn’t know it was going to be like this. The flood took over everywhere, it was God’s intervention that saved all of us here, we would have been submerged,” he said.
While estimating his loss, Mutiu said items destroyed in his shop were worth around N5 million. Residents of the area said they could not sleep in their various houses as they ran for safety on Tuesday night.
A cement seller at the Obate area, Alhaji Agboola Owoniyi. said the rain was too heavy, hence they could not take anything from the shop.
Another businesswoman, who sells bags of rice and groundnut oil, Ogunyemi Jumoke , was in tears as she could not estimate her loss at the moment.
Victims wept uncontrollably following the destruction of their properties worth millions of naira by the heavy downpour.
The downpour which wrecked inexplicable havocs in many parts of the town, lasted hours and affected many areas like Onireke, Obate, Awosuru, Sadiat, Testing Ground, Atimowa and others.
Mostly affected were the businessmen, churches, residential houses, owners of various shops like cement, flour, pharmacy, gas stations, bakeries, boutiques and provisions stores among others.
However, some residents were sacked by the heavy flood that heralded the downpour while those living around the river banks suffered losses that would forever remain un-obliterated in their memories.
A cement shop operator who identified himself as Adesola Adebisi while speaking with our reporter on the development hinted that he lost thousands of money to the disastrous incident and charged the state government to come to the aid of all the affected victims of the flood.
Also, a middle-aged man in the same business, Alhaji Agboola Owoniyi, said “the rain was too heavy that, we could not take anything from the shop.”
“The flood took over the upstairs where my cement was stored and the rain-affected some of the bags of cement worth about N400,000.”
While narrating her own ordeal, bags of rice and groundnut oil seller, Mrs Sangotolu Oyediran, told our reporter that, tears rolled out from her eyelids profusely when she saw the great effect of the torrential downpour.
She appealed to the state government to render assistance to them on the destruction of their properties.
Also, an electronics seller, Shola Mutiu, stated that he lost goods worth N5 million to the destruction.
Meanwhile, the State Government, has called for calm, assuring victims of its response where necessary. A statement signed by Funke Egbemode, Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation in the state on Wednesday, said government had activated its emergency response system, comprising stakeholders in disaster management, which include environmental management officers, health workers and security agencies, to respond efficiently to the incident where necessary.
But the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), in Osun State, has expressed concern over what ‘ it termed increasing deterioration of the state public infrastructures and notable assets.
The party, in a statement signed by its State Publicity Secretary, Ayodeji Areola, blamed the administration of Governor Oyetola for the disaster, asking him to throw in the towel for alleged lack of capacity to manage the state.
The Guardian / Nigerian Tribune
