The lives of many Nigerians have been disrupted in the last weeks. The ravaging floods have submerged entire communities and drowned livelihoods. The country’s north-central and south-southern regions have been particularly hit. Thousands of people in the region are now homeless while properties worth millions have been destroyed.
Anthony Tuedon, a researcher at Lagos Business School, saw the destruction first-hand on Monday. He was on his way to visit his parents in Bayelsa when he saw what had only been media reports and Twitter photos and videos first-hand. His hopes of seeing his parent as early as he had planned was truncated in Patani Local Government Area of Delta State. He had to suspend the journey as the flood already took the best part of the road. The flood already damaged the roads that connect Delta and Bayelsa states.
Read also: Video: Flood takes over Patani, Delta State
“The flood divided the road into two sections,” he said. “Vehicles and trucks on the right side were parked, while the ones on the left were damaged vehicles and trucks gradually being submerged by the flood.”
The researcher recalled that the bus driver had warned the passengers that the road would not be safe to drive but they had pressured him to continue the journey until they reached Patani where they could not go further. A Dangote truck had already fallen into the water.
“The passengers keen on getting to Bayelsa boarded canoes that charged N4000 per person,” Tuedon said.
He has taken a detour and will shelter in a safe place until the flood subsides and the road is good again.
“I can’t risk it because of the absence of life jackets,” he said. “It is too risky.”
