The Lagos State government has called on Lagosians to be ready for heavy rains accompanied by winds and thunder storms in this month of July.
The state government urged people residing on flood plains, low lying areas and other coastlines, to be careful or relocate temporarily to higher grounds when noticing rising water, saying the state was not ready to lose any life to such mishap.
The Commissioner for Environment, Mr Tunji Bello, while speaking in the wake of the prediction by Nigerian Meteorological Agency,NIMET, on expected heavy rainfall in July and the need to sensitise residents, said that the advice was imperative to ensure that Lagosians were safe as the rainy season gets to its peak.
He said, “Rainfall intensity is expected in July with accompanying wind and thunderstorms, but Lagosians are advised not to panic.” There is a need for residents to be safety conscious during this period. Residents are advised to avoid driving through flooded areas as there might be difficulty in judging its depth.”
“Do not drive on high speed and ensure that your vehicles are in good condition. Except only on compulsory occasions, avoid going out during rainy seasons.”
He said, “There will be accumulated water concentration on some parts of the roads and highways, depending on the intensity of the rains, but the accumulated water will recede in no time.”
He said “Due to rains since January, the water level of the soil has increased, causing low infiltration capacity across the state. This has resulted in the saturation of the soil, causing delayed discharge of rain water into the water bodies.”
Bello said Lagos, as a coastal state, was susceptible to flash floods in times of heavy rains, but added that the flood would be effectively discharged into channels that had been cleaned in anticipation of the rains.
He added that the government had intensified its cleaning and maintenance programme, and would not relent until zero tolerance for flooding was attained in the state.
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