The Delta government has called on residents on lowlands and flood-prone areas to relocate to higher planes to escape the impending flooding.

The chief press secretary to the governor, Festus Ahon, made the call in a statement on Wednesday in Asaba.

He said that the warning had become necessary to enable the people relocate to safe areas following the release of water from Cameroon’s Lagdo Dam into the Rivers Niger and Benue.

He said that the state government was concerned about the lives and property of citizens living in flood-prone areas in the face of earlier warnings from the Nigerian Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA).

According to Mr Ahon, Gov. Sheriff Oborevwori has approved the creation of a 14-man flood disaster management committee to mitigate the challenges expected by the impending flood.

“The committee headed by the Secretary to the State Government, Dr Kingsley Emu, has been saddled with the responsibility of carrying out aggressive sensitisation of citizens on the impending flood.

“The committee will also propose appropriate measures for the prevention and management of flooding, address the displacement of people and suggest ways for the provision of relief materials to victims,” he said.

Mr Ahon said that the state government had been informed that the authorities of Lagdo Dam in Cameroon would be releasing modulated amounts of water into the River Benue and River Niger due to flooding caused by torrential rainfall.

He said that the state government would provide support to those displaced from their homes by the rising water level occasioned by the overflow of the River Benue and River Niger.

“Already His Excellency, Gov. Oborevwori has approved the setting up of a Flood Disaster Management Committee to ensure that persons displaced from their homes as a result of the impending flood are adequately catered for.

“They will be accommodated at various Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps nearest to them.

“We are therefore calling on affected citizens to call the following numbers – 08064137841 and 08037200696 – for government intervention in the case of flooding,” the governor’s spokesman said.

(NAN)