The Director-General of The The Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NiMet), Prof. Mansur Matazu, during the Hydro-Meteorological status and outlook system (hydrosos) workshop in Abuja has on Tuesday spoken to journalists about the current situation of flood in the country.
Matazu said that states in the North-Central and South-East zones in Nigeria should expect more flooding.
According to Matazu the flooding was the result of rainfall which might have reached its peak, it could also be the result of opening of dams and other water-holding facilities.
He said, “You remember, we issued the forecast in February and we followed up with the monthly updates that we are going to have above normal rainfall in most part of the country. So, in terms of the rainfall-induced floods, we have seen the peak but remember we told you that this rainwater gets collected into the reservoirs and dams, and whenever they are filled, it gets overflown.
He said presently the Lagdo Dam was released alongside other dams, noting that we would be experiencing riverine flooding which indicated more flooding especially in the North-Central and the southern states.
“So presently, on September 13, the lagdo dam was released, other dams were also released. So, what we are witnessing now is riverine flooding. And from the information we are getting, we are going to see more flood. And now the rains are concentrating on the North-Central and the southern states. So, that will be a combination of short duration, high intensity rain, with riverine flooding. We are going to see more of these floods in the North-Central states as we have seen in Kogi State and also southeastern and southwestern states as we are beginning to see in Anambra and some of parts of South-West.”
Matazu said, “it is no longer news to anyone here that water-related hazards and threats has become a global challenge in the face of a changing climate coupled with population growth and increasing socio-economic activities. Every year, water-related hazard affects millions of people globally and causes damages to property worth billions of dollars.” He said this during the workshop.
He continued by noting that it was expected that water-associated risks were going to intensify in the coming years as the full weight of climate change began to bear on our earth, adding that in Africa, water-related hazards such as flood and drought had become a major cause of food insecurity, strains on livelihoods, health risks and conflicts in many parts of the continent.
The (hydrosos) workshop was organized to propose solutions to global challenges associated with Hydro-meteorological risks.
