Nigerian flood drives 15,000 people from their homes

LAGOS (AFP) Aug 10, 2004
Some 15,000 people from the southern Nigerian town of Ughelli have been driven out of their homes by flooding, following three days of heavy rain, the Delta State information commissioner said Tuesday.

"More than 3,000 houses were submerged by the flooding because of torrential rains and some 15,000 people are now homeless," Magnus Onyibe told

He said the rains forced two rivers -- Cassidy and Eriemu -- to overflow their banks, destroying farmland, livestock and properties worth millions of naira (tens of thousands of dollars or euros).

"The state government, through the bureau for special duties, has sent relief materials to the victims of the flooding," Onyibe said.

"We have also taken flood control measures to contain the disaster from spreading to the adjoining communities," he added.

The commissioner appealed to the Nigerian federal government to help the state cope with the impact of the disaster.

TERRA.WIRE