President Muhammadu Buhari says he receives regular updates on flooding, which has affected more than 500,000 Nigerians since January.

In a statement issued by his media aide Garba Shehu on Tuesday in Abuja, the president extended condolences to those affected by the floods.

He assured them that his regime would continue to provide the needed emergency assistance to individuals and communities impacted by the disaster.

Mr Buhari also invited public-spirited individuals and organisations to support hundreds of thousands of people needing urgent help in the affected communities.

The president noted that the tragic events had brought to the fore the need for states and local governments to step up their “level of preparedness in handling emergencies.”

“The preparedness remains a shared responsibility with the government at the centre,” he added.

Mr Buhari affirmed that his regime would continue to monitor the situation very closely and said this was necessary to work more with states and affected communities to reduce the impact of the disaster, provide resources and improve response and recovery efforts.

The president further urged people living in flood-prone areas to always adhere to warning advisories issued by organisations saddled with climate monitoring and disaster management.

Since January, flooding has been reported in Lagos, Yobe, Borno, Taraba, Adamawa, Edo, Delta, Kogi, Niger, Plateau, Benue, Ebonyi, Anambra, Bauchi, Gombe, Kano, Jigawa, Zamfara, Kebbi, Sokoto, Imo, Abia and the FCT, with 508,721 people affected.

The flooding displaced 73,379 people, recorded 115 casualties, and injured 277 people. The regime claimed that the flooding and heavy rains have left around 37,633 houses destroyed or severely damaged. 

(NAN)