PEOPLE living in flood prone areas have been advised to be at alert to the rising water level and relocate to safer areas to avoid ugly incident.
The Chairman of Ndokwa East Local Government, Chief Vincent Osilonya gave the advice on the occasion of the 2024 flag-off flood sensitization campaign ceremony held at Primary Health Care Centre, Ashaka.
Chief Osilonya said that the charge became necessary to enable those whose farms are in such areas to harvest their farm crops early before the flood.
The local government boss stressed that the sensitization was in line with the incessant warnings by the Nigeria Hydrological Services (NIHAS), and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) on the impending flooding predicted to affect some states and local government areas, including Ndokwa East and Delta State.
He engaged all the president-generals, youth leaders, woman leaders, which were drawn from all the clans in the local government area as stakeholders in their various communities to lend their voice by increasing awareness and sensitization at the grassroots level to safeguard lives and properties and foster sustainable development.
Also speaking, the local government Supervisor for Community and Legal, Hon. Stanley Okudo and Head of Personnel Management (HPM), Mr. Nelson Enuekwe urged them to take the warnings from relevant authorities seriously, adding that the last flood rendered thousands homeless, damaged valuables and washed away their farm crops.
They emphasized the need for collective efforts to take the message back home to their people to rise up to action and not to wait until it would warrant rescue mission.
On their parts, the Head of Environment Department of the Council, Mr. Monday Akpe and the Head of Community Development, Mrs. Josephine Chibogu, who also called out for aggressive sensitization and awareness campaigns, enjoined the people to maintain proper refuse disposal and waste management practices to reduce the incidence of flooding in the area.
Responding on behalf of others, the President-General of Okpai Clan, Deacon Emeke Nwaokolo, thanked the organizers of the programme and promised to disseminate the information widely to all the communities in the area.
