Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Lagos (Agenzia Fides) - Due to heavy rains that is hitting Nigeria, in the Central Plateau region, so far at least 35 people have been killed, 50 are reported missing and 370 houses have been destroyed or submerged by water. Most victims are children between 3 months and 13 years of age, caught in the sleep of the night. We are still looking for many bodies. In recent weeks, especially in Jos, Lagos or in the populous Ibadan, 150 kilometers north of the capital, floods continue to cause damage and roads are closed. Rain water from the Lamingo dam has swept several areas of the city. Currently two camps for displaced people have been set up in order to receive 700 displaced and to give them a little water and food. The largest cities in Nigeria are overcrowded with many residents living in poor slums. Drainage systems are often poorly managed and contribute to aggravate the problem. With about 170 million people integrated in over 200 tribal groups, Nigeria, which is the most populous nation in Africa, suffers different tensions due to its deep political, religious, territorial differences. During the rainy season, which lasts from March to October, in the area of Ibadan, last year 102 people were killed, twenty in Lagos and 24 in Kano, the largest city in northern Nigeria. In 2010, torrential rains affected about half a million people in two thirds of the 36 Nigerian states. (AP) (Agenzia Fides 25/7/2012)
