The management of the Ogun-Osun River Basin Development Authority on Thursday warned residents in the flood prone areas of Lagos and Ogun states of an impending flood.Some residents of Ogun and Lagos states lost properties worth millions of naira to flooding last year.The Managing Director of OORBDA, Mr. Jimi Omiliki, in an interview with our correspondent on Thursday, attributed the problem to global warming, which is causingd the rise in the water level.‘There is the need to warn people to have pre-knowledge of what to expect. A global occurrence does not exclude Nigeria. We must be prepared so that we are not visited by disasters. If we are not prepared, if we are caught unawares, it means we have learnt nothing from the events of the past,” he stated.He maintained that the flooding of some areas was not as a result of the water released from the Oyan Dam, adding that the management of the dam would soon release water as a precautionary measure.He noted that releasing water from the dam would create greater space so that during heavy rain, it would be able to retain more water and prevent flood from ravaging the communities.In averting the tragedy of the past, he stated that the authority, through the Federal Ministry of Environment, had installed two early flood warning equipment at the flood prone areas.He added that in combating flooding in communities in Lagos and Ogun states, the management of the authority had commenced collaborative efforts with the ministries of environment of the two states.Omiliki said the collaboration became necessary in order to mitigate the effect of the flood expected this year due to heavy rain as from June.“Part of the strategies being put in place by the authority include sensitisation meetings and forums with government agencies and stakeholders, early release of water from the dams controlled by the authority to increase the available capacity of the dams’ reservoir to hold water, thereby mitigate the effect of flood water,” he stated.He warned that because of the predictions by the Nigerian Meteorological Agency and the National Emergency Management Agency, “Unusually heavy rainfall will be witnessed this year and attendant the flooding may become inevitable in the flood prone areas of Ogun and Lagos states.”He, therefore, called on the residents and developers along the Ogun River flood plain with particular reference to Owode Onirin, Isheri, Ajegunle, Mile 12, Ikosi-Iketu, Ajiliti, Maidan and other areas affected by flood in 2010 to relocate on short notice and stay off the flood plain area.He said that Lagos and Ogun state governments were well aware of the situation and expressed the hope that the governments would take the necessary steps to forestall the loss of lives and property.
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