By Kemi Olatunde
Incidences of flooding will soon be reduced to the barest minimum in Ondo State as the menace has attracted World Bank attention.
To tame flooding, the following rivers in Akure; Ala/Ayedun axis, Ilado axis, FUTA North gate area, Ire-Akari II along Ijare road and Irese axis would come under the attention of the global bank.
The Hope gathered that the rivers have been placed for World Bank intervention under counterpart funding and the State Governor, Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu has paid the sum of N500 million of the counterpart funding.
The Commissioner for Environment, Mr. Sunday Akinwalire disclosed this while speaking with The Hope in a telephone interview, yesterday on the extent of channelisation carried out in Akure last Friday.
According to him, work is expected to commence in few weeks, describing the channelisation carried out by the State Government at the weekend as an emergency intervention.
He said that the visit of a team led by the Acting Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa a few days ago after a long hour of downpour which led to flooding in some parts of Akure, the State capital was to conduct on-the-spot assessment of the affected areas.
It would be recalled that areas affected by the flood include Ala waterway, Ayedun, Araromi Axis, Irese axis in Akure South, Bethel Estate and Ifedore council areas as residents could not hide their emotions on the extent of damage done by the flood.
Acting Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa during a visit to the areas affected, sympathized with residents at the receiving end of the flood and assured them of government’s prompt intervention.
Aiyedatiwa said the state government has released counterpart funds to partner agencies to clear and expand canals and waterways to avoid flood incidences in the future.
Akinwalire who said that the state scaled through the 2022 prediction of NIMET through adequate preparation stated that the three escavators are in operation in the three senatorial districts.
He assured residents of government preparedness to tackle it, adding that Governor Akeredolu has approved the constitution of high level committee to look at action plan among other things on climate change.
Attributing the cause of most flooding incidences to human factor, he sympatised with the victims of flooding and called on residents to always run for safety during flooding.
He appealed to residents not to cross canals/bridges during rainfall, adding that children should stay indoor and not play in the rain at this period.
He stressed the need for proper waste disposal among residents, adding that they should avoid drainages in their areas.
The commissioner called for change of attitude in the usage of the environment by residents, stating that all should do the needful in ensuring that it is properly used.
