By Kazeem Ugbodaga.
The Lagos State Government has warned Lagos residents living in mudslide and flood-prone areas in the state to relocate to avert disaster.
This follows the mudslide tragedy at Magodo area of Lagos which left four siblings dead. The government said people residing along the valley and slopes across the state had been advised to take precautionary measures at securing those buildings or vacate them immediately to avoid loss of lives and properties.
Speaking spoke after the inspection, hazard analysis/risks assessment of building vulnerable to mudslide/ landslide disaster located around Shogunle, Abule Onigbagbo Comminity and its environ in Onigbongbo Local Council Development Area of the State, the General Manager, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Mr. Michael Akindele directed the immediate evacuation of occupants of No. 20 Shogunle Street, Abule Onigbagbo, Onigbongbo LCDA that had been severely affected by mudslide/landslide. This is because the entire environment had been severely eroded and the natural stability of the slope disturbed, thus leading to partial collapse of some buildings.
He said the discharge of run-off water from various drainages which were emptied into the valley within the vicinity of 20 Shogunle Street had exacerbated erosion and might lead to mudslide occurrence around the building, which he said “is disaster in waiting” if not immediately mitigated.
According to the General Manager, “the action taken by the agency is part of its effort at mitigating/preventing the negative impact of mudslide disaster which may lead to collapse of buildings and eventually loss of lives and properties.”
Akindele, therefore, warned Lagosian residing in mudslide and flood-prone zones to take necessary measures to protect such buildings and also those that had been marked by the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LABCA) and the Ministry of the Environments to immediately comply with their directives as torrential rainfall might increase the likely occurrence of disasters such as collapsed building, mudslide/landslide and flooding with attendant negative impact.
The General Manager added that the agency would continue to carry out monitoring of buildings and other facilities aimed at checkmating impending emergencies/disasters, noting that the agency had also embarked on advocacy and sensitizations through radio/television jingle, guests’ appearance on television and radio as well as town hall meetings in educating the people on emergency/disaster prevention, mitigations and preparedness towards building their resilience.