Abuja, Nigeria (AP) — Severe flooding in northeastern Nigeria has left 30 people dead and affected more than a million others, authorities said on Wednesday.
The collapse of a major dam in the state of Borno on Tuesday caused some of the state’s worst flooding since the same dam collapsed 30 years ago, and prompted many residents to flee their homes. The state government said the dam was at capacity due to unusually high rains.
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The current flooding comes nearly two years after Nigeria’s worst flooding in a decade killed more than 600 people across the country.
About 15% of Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state, was under water, state police spokesperson Nahum Daso told The Associated Press on Tuesday.
Ezekiel Manzo, spokesperson of National Emergency Management Agency, said Wednesday that the death toll is 30.
“One million people have been affected so far,” said an aide for the governor of Borno, adding that as efforts to document displaced people begin, that number could rise to up to 2 million.
Residents of Maiduguri said that food has become expensive since the central market was destroyed during the flooding. There are also ongoing fears of wildlife after the flooding partially destroyed a local zoo and several of the animals escaped.
Mary Mamza, a Maiduguri resident, said people are afraid to leave their homes after an escaped crocodile was killed near her home earlier today.
These fears come as West Africa has experienced some of its worst flooding in decades. Over 2.3 million people have been affected by flooding so far this year which is a threefold increase from last year according to the UN.
African nations are losing up to 5% of their GDP every year as they bear a heavier burden than the rest of the world from climate change, a new report said Monday after one of the continent’s hottest years on record.
The World Meteorological Organization said many African nations are spending up to 9% of their budgets for climate adaptation policies.
The aide of the governor stressed that rescue operations were still underway and that people displaced by the flooding are gathering at a former refugee camp outside the flood zone.