The town of Mokwa, in Niger State, was hit with the worst flash flood in living memory on Thursday after overnight rains, with swathes of the town wiped out in a matter of hours.
Emergency agencies and the government said they began delivering aid immediately to the victims, but residents insisted the response was lacklustre, with multiple families telling AFP earlier this week they still hadn't received anything.
Some said they were depending "solely" on fortunate neighbours and relatives whose properties were spared.
Many victims were visibly angry Monday at the sparse government presence.
An attempt to distribute some relief materials ended abruptly after residents -- sceptical the event might be a staged photo op -- insisted the items be distributed openly.
But a traditional leader of the community, Mohammed Shaba Aliyu, told AFP Wednesday that the relief materials donated by "government and private individuals" were getting to the victims.
"What we need now are consumables, and the government and some private individuals are providing us with consumables," he said.
Vice President Kashim Shettima, visiting the area Wednesday, said the government would donate trucks of "assorted food commodities" and 2 billion naira (about $1.3 million) to reconstruct damaged homes.
Multiple international aid agencies said earlier this week that they were working with local authorities to support ongoing response efforts.
The spokesman for the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Manzo Ezekiel, said relief materials were being provided in batches so they could get to people in need securely.
"These kinds of sites become criminal areas with people wanting to take advantage," Ezekiel told AFP. "The provision of aid has to be in batches. Items have been handed over to community leaders in the area for distribution."
- 'High risk of disease' -
Federal water management minister Joseph Utsev said the flooding was "caused by heavy rainfall due to extreme weather conditions occasioned by climate change", though he also cautioned against "unregulated structures" and called on local governments to maintain drainage channels.
The Red Cross described the incident as one of the "deadliest disasters in recent years to hit Niger State."
Several victims told AFP Monday that a displaced camp that the government had set up was not functional, with many electing to sleep under trees.
A spokesman for Niger state emergency agency Ibrahim Husseini said the victims refused to move to the camp.
"Some of them feel it is a slap on their face to go (there)," he said.
With the Islamic holiday of Eid al-Adha only days away, the Muslim-majority community is not in the mood for the lavish celebration feasts associated with the festival.
"The Sallah is going to be low-key," Aliyu said. "On Saturday, we will have a large number of Muslims at the central mosque to offer our prayers to the departed."
The town is still in total darkness after the floods destroyed no fewer than 15 electricity poles.
As residents contend with the humid weather and a shortage of water supply, the Red Cross said Mokwa faces a "high risk of disease due to contaminated water", which may worsen the already dire situation in the weeks to come.
Shettima insisted that the power situation would be resolved soon.
"We are going to walk the talk," he said.
Nigeria flooding death toll jumps past 200
Abuja (AFP) June 3, 2025 -
Flash flooding in north-central Nigeria last week killed more than 200 people, the Niger state humanitarian commissioner said Tuesday, while hundreds more remain missing and are feared dead.
The town of Mokwa was hit with the worst flash flood in living memory Thursday from overnight rains, with more than 250 homes destroyed and swathes of the town wiped out in a single morning.
The announcement comes after several days of the official toll standing at around 150, even as residents were sometimes missing more than a dozen members in a single family.
"We have more than 200... corpses," Ahmad Suleiman told Nigerian broadcaster Channels Television, adding: "Nobody can tell you the number of casualties in Niger state right now because up till now, we are still looking for some corpses."
"We're still looking for more," he added. But, he said, "sincerely speaking, we cannot ascertain."
Given the number of people still missing nearly a week later, the toll from a single morning of flooding in Mokwa could be worse than all of 2024 combined, which saw 321 deaths from flooding across the country.
The Niger State Emergency Management Agency said Tuesday that the death toll was 159.
- Climate change, human factors -
Climate change has made weather swings in Nigeria more extreme, but residents in Mokwa said human factors were also at play.
Water had been building up for days behind an abandoned railway track that runs along the edge of the town, residents told AFP.
It would usually pass through a couple of culverts in the mounds and run into a narrow channel.
But debris had blocked the culverts, forcing water to build up behind the clay walls that eventually gave way.
Floods in Nigeria are often exacerbated by inadequate drainage, the construction of homes on waterways and the dumping of waste in drains and water channels.
Federal water management minister Joseph Utsev said that the flooding was "caused by heavy rainfall due to extreme weather conditions occasioned by climate change", though he also cautioned against "unregulated structures" and called on local governments to maintain their drainage channels.
Volunteers and disaster response teams have recovered bodies nearly 10 kilometres (six miles) away after they were swept into the Niger River.
- Warnings issued -
Days before the disaster struck Mokwa, the Nigerian Meteorological Agency had warned of possible flash floods in 15 of Nigeria's 36 states, including Niger state, between Wednesday and Friday.
When AFP reporters visited the town earlier this week, a powerful stench filled the air, which residents said came from decaying corpses trapped under the rubble.
The government said it has delivered aid, but locals have criticised what they say is a lacklustre response, with multiple families telling AFP they hadn't received anything.
The National Emergency Management Agency issued another statement Tuesday saying it was "working tirelessly to provide immediate assistance to affected residents".
Related Links
Bringing Order To A World Of Disasters
When the Earth Quakes
A world of storm and tempest
| Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters |
| Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters |
