The Bauchi State Executive Council on Monday, September 10, reported that persistent flooding across 16 local government areas has resulted in the deaths of 24 individuals and the destruction of property valued at over N22 billion.
In response to the disaster, the council has established an inter-ministerial committee tasked with evaluating the extent of the damage caused by the floods.
The commissioner for Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management, who mentioned that the ministry is still finalizing its report, said, “According to the preliminary findings, 24 people have died, 163 have been injured, and 16 local government areas have been impacted.
“Additionally, 60 culverts have been washed away, 12 major roads have been blocked, 178 electric poles have been destroyed, and 11,183 livestock and 122,330 households have been affected. Furthermore, 52,000 houses have been destroyed.
“When such an incident happened, the victims were kept in primary schools and later they joined their relatives in the town they didn’t open any Internally Displaced Persons camp.”
The Bauchi State Executive Council has also approved the allocation of funds for the rehabilitation of damaged infrastructure, including culverts, access roads, schools, and public buildings.
The council emphasized that the formation of the inter-ministerial committee was a response to a directive from the Federal Government, aimed at assessing the full extent of the disaster, which has impacted several states across the federation.
“The committee, chaired by the Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, will comprise relevant commissioners as members, with the Secretary to the State Government, monitoring its activities,” she said.
On his part, the Commissioner for Housing and Environment, announced that he had directed his ministry to crack down on structures built on waterways across the state.
He said the move aimed to prevent future flood disasters as assessments indicated that blockage of waterways exacerbated the problem.
In the remarks, it was stated that the Ministry of Education has secured approval for the renovation and remodeling of the state Education Resource Center.
This center will be merged with the newly commissioned Zainab Bulkachuwa ICT Center to create a world-class learning facility aimed at enhancing education and learning in the state.
