More than 5,000 flood disaster victims in Anambra state’s ten out of 21 local government districts have expressed concern about a lack of medications, food, and sleeping supplies.
The victims, who are dispersed among numerous IDP camps established by the state administration, expressed worry for their safety.
When the Daily Trust Correspondent visited the Umueri, Umuoba, and Umueze Anam camps, which are all located in the Anambra’ East and Anambra’ West local government areas of the state, he or she did not see any representatives from the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) or the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA).
Officials have avoided the camp since Governor Charles Soludo’s two-week visit.
The victims sleep outside, atop bridges, even in the middle of the road.
Due to a lack of shelter, the majority of the victims in Anambra’s East and West who gathered at the Umueze Anam Bridge and the Otuocha Daily Market Bridge Road have been sleeping in the open for more than two weeks.
Residents at the Umueze Anam bridge constructed cubbies and temporary beds where nursing mothers and elderly persons spend the night.
The Otuocha Daily Market’s vendors have been compelled by the water to conduct business along the Otuocha-Awkuzu route.
Market vendor Mrs. Nkiruka Kwalo stated in an interview, “We are not happy at all since those relief supplies are being diverted and our people are dying of hunger; we also need is money to go back to farming after the flood subsides.”
The majority of us sleep on top of this bridge, where there are a ton of mosquitoes, exposing our kids to all kinds of diseases, and nobody is helping us, she claimed.
At Unity Hall Umuoba Anam, community leaders could also be seen struggling to keep nursing mothers and small children from fighting over packets of noodles while they wailed bitterly over their lack of food and shelter.
Only 37 matrasses were available for the camp’s 1,200 displaced people, according to Mr. Omenwa Victor, President General of Umuoba Anam.
They criticized the fact that the others are forced to sleep on the floor.
He said, “We are doing the best we can, but there are too many people, and we only have 37 mats for 1,200 people, so the rest sleep on the floor. We had a visit from the governor about a week ago, and they said they will bring more and food, but we are still waiting. We appreciate everyone who has been coming to aid us and need food for the kids,” he continued.
About 25 people perished in the flood tragedy, which destroyed several homes, businesses, churches, and schools and flooded buildings worth tens of billions of naira.
The state administration has shut down a number of schools.
The federal government claims to be still researching the full scope of the flood disaster’s effects across states.
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However, Soludo has urged parliamentarians and the federal government to handle the problem quickly.
The governor stated during his appearance on a Channels Television program that in order to prevent future flooding, the nation needs to have a national discussion about it.
“Perpetual flooding is no longer an emergency that needs to be addressed. We expected it to occur. We anticipate the upcoming one. In a year or two, another significant one will occur, therefore the nation must start preparing and considering what we would do if it did so again. In the months leading up to the election next year, that discussion needs to spread across the country. I believe the National Assembly and the presidency ought to respond more forcefully, particularly in the ensuing two to three weeks when the flooding subsides, he said.
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