Rain wreaks havoc in Calabar

The rain, which came with heavy windstorm, ripped open many roofs and also left many parts of the city flooded, despite government and communal efforts to contain neighbourhood floods.But according to a resident on Webber Street, Barrister Edet Ating, who had his family house destroyed, “the rain left behind wanton destruction and my neighbours and […]

The rain, which came with heavy windstorm, ripped open many roofs and also left many parts of the city flooded, despite government and communal efforts to contain neighbourhood floods.
But according to a resident on Webber Street, Barrister Edet Ating, who had his family house destroyed, “the rain left behind wanton destruction and my neighbours and I are now in pathetic situations.”
Ating said the street which was named after an English Judge and where the first indigenous Inspector General of Police, Louis Edet lived, was no longer motorable.
Another eyewitness, Chief Innocent Ekpenyong, lamented that perimeter walls and trees were pulled down, making it possible for ramshackle structures and other properties to be destroyed.
In Ubenekang, Idang and Nsemo Streets, in the Ambo neighbourhood, also in Calabar South LGA, the one-day rain and its attendant heavy flood and aided by erosion, effortlessly pulled structures.
Pleading for government urgent intervention in the area, a resident, Okon Essien Effiom, urged government to curb the menace of erosion.
But the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Liyel Imoke, Christian Ita, said the government has spent plenty of resources to combat the menace, especially in Calabar metropolis, adding that government was also partnering with World Bank and other organisations in this regard.
Commissioner for Works, Leghor Idagbor, explained that his ministry recently spent over N2 Billion to construct drainage to channel flood water in the city, disclosing that other state agencies were working to contain the impact of the flood in Calabar South LGA.
Senior Environmental Specialist at the World Bank and team leader, Nigerian Environmental and Watershed Management Project (NEWMAP), Dr. Amos Abu, disclosed that the Bank has released $580 million for intervention in five environmental and gully erosion sites in Cross River State.