At least two persons have died after two days of torrential rainfall triggered devastating floods that submerged homes, displaced residents and crippled movement across Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital, and parts of Itu Local Government Area.
The victims were reportedly swept away by floodwaters along Nkemba Street as heavy rains, which began early Thursday and continued into Friday, overwhelmed drainage channels and inundated major roads and residential communities.
The flooding disrupted traffic on several roads, including Abak Road, Nkemba, Ukana Offot, Obio Offot, Use Offot, Udoette, Ebong Esien, Port Harcourt Street, Itam, Tabernacle Road and the Urua Ekpa axis of Itam in Itu Local Government Area.
Several homes were submerged, forcing residents to flee, while vehicles were stranded as many roads became impassable.
The palace of a traditional ruler was also flooded, with household property destroyed and many residents rendered homeless around the Port Harcourt Street axis of Uyo.
A church building housing the Uyo branch of the Church of Christ on Abak Road and the popular Mechanics Village were also inundated, forcing worshippers to flee while traders counted heavy losses.
A trader at the Mechanics Village, Udo John Udobot, lamented that repeated appeals for relocation had yielded no results.
“We have been asking the government to relocate us. We were promised a new site years ago, but nothing has happened. Now we have lost goods to flooding and thieves who broke into our shops during the rain,” he said.
Other badly affected areas included Two Lanes, Four Lanes, Aka Itiam, Ikpa Road, Shelter Afrique, IBB Avenue and surrounding communities, where floodwaters forced many residents to abandon their homes.
Residents also reported that strong winds accompanying the rainfall damaged buildings and farmlands in parts of Eket Local Government Area, particularly in the Okon community.
“This is too much for us. We need the state government and relevant agencies to come to our aid,” a resident of Eket, Nseobong Etim, appealed.
At Tabernacle Road, residents struggled to rescue children and salvage household belongings as floodwaters swept through homes.
The situation sparked protests, with angry residents blocking parts of Ikot Ekpene Road and accusing the government and the contractor handling the ongoing Tabernacle Road project of failing to address the area’s persistent flooding.
The protesters alleged that delays in completing the 2.2-kilometre road project had worsened flooding in the community.
Responding, the Akwa Ibom State Government said Governor Umo Eno had directed the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), the Ministry of Environment and Mineral Resources, the Akwa Ibom State Waste Management and Environmental Protection Agency (AKSEPWMA) and other relevant agencies to commence emergency response operations in the affected communities.
Emergency workers were later deployed to clear blocked drainage channels and excavate gutters around the Abak Road and Nkemba Street corridor, where the two fatalities were recorded.
One carriageway of the two-lane Abak Road was temporarily closed as rescue teams continued efforts to ease the flooding and restore traffic.
