Lagos Flood Control: Govt Deploys Swamp Buggy to Ogombo, Awoyaya, Iponri

• ….residents hail Wahab, say ‘This is government that works’

The Lagos State Government has deployed an additional swamp buggy to flood-prone communities in a renewed effort to tackle flooding across the state.

The equipment has been deployed to Ogombo Canal, Awoyaya and Iponri in Surulere Local Government Area, while another machine has been moved to Gbetu/Iwerekun behind Mayfair Garden in the Ajah area.

According to the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, the machines will support ongoing desilting and channelisation aimed at widening and deepening drainage channels to improve the flow of stormwater.

The ministry said similar interventions would be extended to all local government areas and Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) across the state as part of a broader flood management strategy.

Officials said the deployment followed an assessment of rainfall patterns and vulnerable locations.

“We are not waiting for disaster to happen. Once we saw the pattern of rainfall and the pressure points, we moved in with equipment. Ogombo Canal is a major outfall, so clearing it has a multiplier effect on adjoining communities,” a senior official said.

In a statement on Wednesday, the ministry reaffirmed the state’s commitment to protecting lives and property, adding that other communities affected by recent flooding had been scheduled for similar interventions in the coming weeks.

The ministry also urged local government councils and LCDAs to intensify the clearing of tertiary drains within streets and estates to complement the state’s efforts.

“Primary and secondary drains are the responsibility of the state. But tertiary drains within streets and estates fall to the councils. We need them to intensify desilting now so we don’t lose the gains we are making,” the ministry said.

Residents of some of the affected communities welcomed the intervention, describing it as timely.

A resident of Awoyaya, Tajudeen Ayanwale, commended the Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, saying the government’s response came while the rainy season was still underway.

Another resident, Ada Chukwuemeka of Iponri, also expressed appreciation for the intervention, saying it had restored residents’ confidence in the state’s flood control efforts.

“The Ministry of the Environment has risen to the occasion. Lagos is truly becoming a centre of excellence again. It has not been easy with the volume of rain, but they have proven they are up to the task. I appeal to Lagosians to cooperate with the government. Stop dumping refuse in drains. If we do our part, very soon we will have the Lagos of our dream,” she said.

Another resident, who gave his name simply as Tunde, a trader at Ogombo, noted the economic impact. Related News

“Last year, water entered my shop, and I lost goods worth over N400,000. This year, because they came early to clear the canal, the water passed quickly. Government should keep this tempo. Don’t wait until people cry before you act,” he said.

A community youth leader in Awoyaya, Comrade Femi Adebayo, also weighed in: “We have complained for years that Ogombo Canal was silting up. To see a swamp buggy here now tells us someone is listening. We will help by sensitising our people not to block drains with sand and waste.”

While commending the state, residents were unanimous on one demand: sustain it.

“We appreciate what the government is doing now. Our prayer is that this should not be a one-off thing. Continuous clearing will save us from the pains of flooding every year.

“Let them come even in dry season. That’s when the real work is done. If we wait till rain falls, it will always be an emergency,” said Mrs Yetunde Balogun of Iponri. 

Environmental experts have long argued that Lagos’ flooding problem is 40% rainfall and 60% human behaviour — indiscriminate dumping, building on drainage alignments, and poor maintenance of tertiary drains.

The Ministry acknowledged this, saying public enlightenment and enforcement will be stepped up alongside the engineering works.

Officials disclosed that similar swamp buggy deployments are planned for other critical outfalls across the 5 IBILE divisions before the peak of the rainy season. The goal, they said, is to increase drainage capacity by at least 30% in vulnerable corridors.

For now, the focus remains on keeping channels free, educating residents, and ensuring councils do their part.

As Adegbite noted during a recent inspection: “Government can provide the machines and the manpower, but every Lagosian must become a drainage officer in their own street.”

With the new swamp buggy now grinding through Ogombo Canal, the message from Awoyaya to Iponri is clear: the state is present, but the partnership must be total.

If maintenance is sustained and residents stop blocking drains, Lagos may finally turn the corner on its perennial flooding challenge.