allafrica/stories/201406170941.html?mstac=0 Abuja — The Federal Government, through the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA), has forecast that over 23 states in Nigeria would experience flooding in 2014. Minister of Water Resources, Sarah Ochekpe, who announced this on Monday at the public presentation of the 2014 Annual Flood Outlook (AFO) in Abuja, said, however, that the expected flood in the country in 2014 would be less than that of 2012 and 2013. Ochekpe explained that the forecast was based on the 2014 Nigerian Meteorological Agency Seasonal Rainfall Prediction and historical records of the hydrological stations across the country, to provide NIHSAs perspective, using hydrological and hydro-geological parameters and trends. The impending flood, according to her, has been classified into three categories, namely high flood risk areas, medium flood risk areas and low flood risk areas. States with high flood risk areas include Sokoto, Zamfara, Yobe, Bauchi, Jigawa, Kebbi, Nasarawa, Taraba, Adamawa, Oyo and Osun. The moderate flood risk areas are Kaduna, Niger, Edo, Cross River, Borno, Imo and Plateau states. Coastal flooding resulting from sea rise and tidal surges are likely to occur in Bayelsa, Rivers, Delta, Ondo, Ogun and Lagos states, while flash floods could be experienced in some major urban locations such as Lagos, Port-Harcourt, Osogbo, Sokoto, Maiduguri, Ibadan and towns along Nigeria coastlines. To this end, the minister called for proper measures to be put in place by relevant authorities for effective mitigation of adverse effects of flood, adding that the AFO would serve the purpose of providing early warning to Nigerians for risk mitigation, especially to those living in the flood-prone areas of the country.
Posted on: Mon, 30 Jun 2014 04:54:25 +0000
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