Jumoke Olasunkanmi
The impending danger that the Trademore Estate flood crisis posed has eased, due to the strategic widening of waterways embarked upon by the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA).
Africa Health Report (AHR) observed that this development has improved free water flow, thereby addressing the issue of flooding causes by heavy rainfall in the estate.
AHR recalls that when the housing estate located in Lugbe, an Abuja suburb, was ravaged by flood on June 23, as it also was in 2022, several stakeholders commented that the worst was still ahead if critical steps were not taken to address the root of the problem.
However, in the aftermath of the expansion work by FCTA, there have been heavy rainfalls on June 23, July 12, 14, 19 and a fierce downpour on July 28 for several hours, but houses were safe as the water took its course freely.
Speaking on the temporary intervention, Muhammed Kadri, a resident of the estate, told AHR that the measure was insightful in the way it was carried out, as it averted further hardship on the already devastated victims.
“I think the widening of water ways was an excellent intervention. And you can see, it worked. It is particularly insightful for me because the people needed a situation that did not further complicate their misery. And this was embarked upon without demolishing a single residential apartment. I think it’s really commendable of the FCTA,” Mr Kadri said.
Another resident, Adenle Oke, commended the move, but advised that actions aimed at averting disasters should be proactive, rather than reactive.
“This is commendable,” he said. “But interventions like this should not wait until damage has been done. This flood crisis first surfaced in 2014, it is not good that we have a recurrence before initiatives are taken. But we can see that this one by the FCTA is working.”
The June 23 flooding crisis left over 100 residential buildings unhabitable and countless families homeless. In an exemplary collaboration between the FCTA, Office of the First Lady, Remi Tinubu, and Senator representing the FCT, Ireti Kingibe, the affected victims recieved prompt humanitarian intervention but there were no assurances at the time that the incident will not reoccur as the raining season was still early.
Due to the severity of the June 23 crisis, many commentators hurriedly concluded that several of the estate buildings were on designated water ways and that this was responsible for the crisis. This led the FCTA to propose a demolition of buildings with the declaration of the estate as a “disaster zone” by the Permanent Secretary of the FCTA, Mr Olusade Adesola, on June 27.
However, an Abuja court granted an interim injunction prohibiting the Minister of FCT, the Federal Capital Territory Development Authority (FCDA), the Abuja Metropolitan Management Council (AMMC), and the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) from demolishing the estate.
