Bridge connecting Yobe to three states is destroyed by flood

Ibekimi Oriamaja Reports

Just 22 km from Damaturu, the state capital, a late-night downpour yesterday blocked the Damaturu/Buni Yadi/Biu Highway at the Katarko Bridge.

State Emergency Management Agency authorities were unable to deliver relief supplies to the people of the flooded Mutai neighborhood as a result of the development.

In a flood notice posted on his verified social media accounts, the Executive Secretary of the State Emergency Management Agency (YOSEMA) announced that the Katarko Bridge has been completely closed off since floodwater swept out the road connecting the bridge.

One of the important bridges in the Damaturu/Buni Yadi/Biu road is the Katarko bridge. It connects Borno, Adamawa, Gombe, and Taraba states’ southern regions.

The bridge was obliterated in a Boko Haram attack in July 2014.

The declaration reads:

Flooding was caused by Katarko Bridge being detached because to heavy rain.

“On August 30, 2022, Yobe SEMA learned with sadness that the Katarko Bridge will no longer be connected to the main road. This bridge connects Damaturu to the LGAs of Gujba, Gulani, and Biu.

“Flooding occurrences have already occurred in the communities of Mutai, Buni Yadi, and Gulani, raising serious worries, particularly in Mutai. As citizens rush to the situation to prevent any casualties, Yobe SEMA has already contacted the military to provide a barricade in Katarko.

The Yobe State Government is offering alternate routes to reach people in need and to reconnect the affected communities, despite the possibility that this will hamper providing immediate life-saving assistance to communities that have already been impacted by flooding or that are recovering from a conflict.

Among the 500,000 people affected by flooding this year across the nation, no fewer than 115 people died.

The Presidency said President Muhammadu Buhari has been receiving daily updates on the catastrophes, and it also delivered the data yesterday evening.

The unfortunate development has once again highlighted the need for the states and council areas to increase their own portion of the responsibility to prepare the populace for emergency situations, according to a statement made by Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu.

“Since January of this year, flooding has been reported in the following states and the Federal Capital Territory: Lagos, Yobe, Borno, Taraba, Adamawa, Edo, Delta, Kogi, Niger, Plateau, Benue, Ebonyi, Anambra, Bauchi, Gombe, Kano, Jigawa, Zamfara, Kebbi, Sokoto, Imo, Abia. 508,721 people have been affected.

“The catastrophic floods have caused 73,379 people to be displaced, 115 fatalities, and 277 injuries.

According to the most recent information provided to the Presidency by the relevant Federal Government Ministries, Departments, and Agencies, “the floods and heavy rain have left roughly 37, 633 dwellings destroyed or seriously damaged” (MDA).

According to the statement, “President Muhammadu Buhari is receiving daily briefings on the country’s flood crisis, which has affected over 500,000 Nigerians since January this year.”