Fire engine submerged
hehehehe......Serious flooding has ravaged many parts of Asaba, the capital of Delta State, destroying official documents and some homes.
A heavy three-hour downpour has wreaked havoc on the Delta State
capital, Asaba, and surrounding communities, a SaharaReporters report
has shown.
The torrential rain left numerous residents homeless and destroyed
homes estimated at several millions of naira. Also destroyed were part
of the Government House fence, computers, and vehicles.
According to SaharaReporters, the rain started around 5 pm on
Saturday and lasted over three hours. Eyewitnesses said the state
secretariat, Delta Broadcasting Service, (DBS), State Security Service
Road, Okpanam-Ibusa Road, Junior Staff Quarters Road, State Universal
Basic Education Board, (SUBEB), and former legislative quarters, among
others, were submerged by the flood.
At the Delta Broadcasting Service, off Okpanam Road, staff who
reported for morning duty were seen roaming about outside the main
compound as the station remained off air, while office chairs, tables,
computers, cameras, tapes, vital documents, records, writing materials
and other personal belongings were seen floating on the water.
At the secretariat housing the offices of Establishment, Post
Primary Education Board, (PPEB), Fire Service, part of the Ministry of
Information, Delta State Rural Development Agency among others, civil
servants were seen crowded at the main gate of the secretariat as vital
officials files, documents, official records, books, fridges, shelves,
photocopiers, computers were also floating on the deep water.
A civil servant accused Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of paying lip
service to the incessant flooding in the state capital. The Okowa
administration recently claimed that the state government had released
N100 million to the contractor handling a construction of diversion
drainages to accommodate the flooding on Okpanam Road and other
locations during heavy downpours, but several residents said no work has
been done.
Reacting to the flooding and destruction of official properties at
the state secretariat, some of the civil servants urged Governor Okowa
to stop ignoring the flood issue.
"We have lost our official documents, files, our belongings, to
the flood. You can see how everything is floating on the water," said
one civil servant. He added, "The situation is irresponsible. Is Okowa
saying allocation is not coming to the state.? What stopped the governor
from tackling this problem since two years?"
Another irate civil servant said he feared that the flood could
have destroyed thousands of workers and pensioners' files at the state
secretariat.
"Asaba flood is a man-made disaster, not the natural flooding people talk about," said another civil servant. According to him,
"For the next one week, no official work can be done here in the state
secretariat and DBS. Some of our colleagues who risked it to their
offices for a rescue mission could not do anything because they were
almost swallowed up by the water. Instead of addressing the flooding in
Asaba, Okowa is busy awarding contracts to himself, his brothers, family
members, and cronies."
In another development, the Delta State Council of the Radio
Television Theatre and Arts Workers Union of Nigeria (RATTAWU), has
challenged Governor Okowa to give priority to the state-owned media
organizations, Delta Broadcasting Service (DBS) in Asaba and Warri
rather than any other electronic private media in and outside the state.
The union made the demand last Thursday at the end of its executive
meeting presided over by the state chairman, Onoriode Mukoro.
The union urged Mr. Okowa to speed up the connection of the 33kva
power line for DBS Asaba and Ubulu-uku sub station. They also emphasized
the need for interconnectivity between DBS Asaba and Warri in order for
the station to bring to Deltans events across the state on a single
telecast.
The union also stated it was important that the government provide
outside broadcast vans (OB Vans) in order to achieve live broadcasts.
They added, "The need for operational vehicles cannot be over
emphasized as this will enhance the station's ability to comb the nook
and crannies of the state in order to improve content, as well as
aesthetics of our television screen, state of the art television
cameras, editing facilities and well-designed backdrops for television
productions, should be considered."
See more photos below:
Cars are submerged
facilities of Delta State Broadcasting Service submerged in water
Delta State Rural Devt flooded
Delta Broadcasting Service under water
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