Flooding Could Persist till September, Contaminate Drinking Water, NiHSA Warns

The Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NiHSA) has warned that flooding across parts of Nigeria could persist till September.

Umar Mohammed, director-general of the agency, said the flooding is anticipated based on NiHSA’s forecasts and warned that the situation could worsen between August and September if urgent action is not taken.

Speaking through Emmanuel Tuna, head of NiHSA’s geographic information system (GIS) and remote sensing department, in an interview with Sunday Vanguard, Mohammed said the agency had issued early warnings before the floods.

“This is something we foresaw, we saw it coming,” Mohammed said.

“As we speak now, with the flooding happening, if nothing is done, this is just the start of the rainy season, sometime around July-September (12 weeks), and it could be worse than what is even happening right now.

“And we’re expecting it to be worse around August-September, particularly August-September.”

Mohammed said beyond the destruction caused by floodwaters, NiHSA is concerned about the impact on drinking water sources.

He said the agency collected baseline data on the quality of borehole water before the floods and plans to carry out post-flood assessments to determine the extent and sources of contamination.

“We were concerned about the drinking water because we expected it to last longer, the flood to last over a long period,” he said.

“So, we started analysing the quality of the water, and we did, we have our reports.

“We wanted to observe the quality of the water before the flood because we know that after flooding, or even during flood, we are expecting challenges of drinking water in the states.”

“So we can get to confirm what is polluting the water. We want to confirm the sources, particularly the source. So we have before flood records, as we speak, and now that flooding is happening, I am sure my DG is already putting together a team to go to Lagos and get a post-flood report.”

Mohammed said Lagos remains one of the country’s most flood-prone states because it is vulnerable to urban, riverine and coastal flooding.

According to him, blocked drainage channels, silt buildup and low-lying terrain have worsened the impact of recent rains, while rising river levels have compounded flooding in some parts of the state.

“We are expecting this flood to be on and off, and to span from July to September on and off,” he said.

“Around October, we are expecting these rains to be receding… the only time we can be safe, I will be honest, is possibly around November.”

The NiHSA DG also accused state governments of failing to act on the agency’s annual flood outlook and early warnings.

“We have a challenge of cooperation from states, a serious challenge with cooperation from states,” he added.

“Most times we get disregarded. Our warnings are not taken with seriousness.”

Last week, torrential rainfall triggered widespread flooding in parts of Nigeria, with Lagos among the hardest-hit states as roads, homes and critical infrastructure were submerged.

The development disrupted movement, displaced residents and caused power outages in some communities after floodwaters inundated a transmission substation.