The Lagos State Government says the recent flooding in parts of Ikorodu was caused by a contractor blocking a downstream waterway. This blockage stopped stormwater from flowing naturally during heavy rainfall.
The Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, explained this on Monday. He also said the state is committed to building stronger infrastructure to reduce flooding across Lagos.
According to a statement from the ministry’s spokesperson, Kunle Adeshina, Wahab said the 14-hour heavy rainfall that recently hit Ikorodu was made worse by human activities that disturbed the natural drainage system.
“What happened in Ikorodu was that the contractor blocked the downstream area to continue construction work. He didn’t expect such heavy rains,” Wahab said. “When the rains came, the government told him to open the downstream so the water could flow and people could return to their normal lives.”
The commissioner said the government had been preparing for this year’s rains since March, after the Nigerian Meteorological Agency warned of heavy rainfall.
He added that the ministry had held awareness campaigns at least five times in the past three months to warn residents that this year’s rains would be heavier than previous years.
Wahab advised residents in low-lying, flood-prone areas like Agboyi, Agiliti, Itowolo, and Ajegunle to move temporarily to higher ground until the water level goes down.
He also said that the state’s Emergency Flood Abatement Gang had already cleared more than 666,000 drains and manholes across Lagos as part of flood prevention work.
Over the past two years, the state has cleaned more than 50 kilometres of secondary drainage channels and dredged about 38 major waterways to improve water flow.
Wahab pointed out that climate change is making extreme weather more common, even in countries that were not used to heavy flooding before.
“We were ready for the rains,” he said. “The government has been working on drainage projects across the state, and we have been telling residents the truth — there will be flash floods, but we are working to manage them.”
