Heavy Rain Renders Lagos Roads, Homes, Schools Flooded…. Residents lament.
By Omowumi Omotosho
Heavy rainfall has caused severe flooding in residential areas and major roads throughout Lagos State. The downpour, which persisted for hours on Wednesday, inundated various parts of the city, including Ibeju-Lekki, Ketu, Oworonshoki, Oshodi, Epe, Sangotedo, and Awoyaya, among others.
Residents attributed the flooding to blocked waterways caused by indiscriminate waste disposal.
Rasheed Ayobami, a resident of the Labora area, reported that his house was completely submerged due to the absence of a functional drainage system in his neighbourhood.
“There is too much water flowing into my compound; the entire house is submerged. I live in a new site where there is no drainage, which makes the water run into residential homes, rendering us homeless because we can’t sleep inside the water,” he said.
Seyi Arowosaye, another resident, lamented the frequent flooding on the Ibeju-Lekki Expressway, blaming it on clogged drains throughout the metropolis. Arowosaye urged the Ibeju-Lekki Local Government to clear the drains and called on residents to stop dumping waste into drainage systems to mitigate flooding. He also requested the Lagos State Government to expedite road repairs in the Sangotedo area.
Mrs. Bola Fadugba, another affected resident, described the impact of the floods in the Labora area: “I live in Labora, but during the rainy season, I relocate with my family to my younger sister’s house in the Eputu area. Flood has taken over my house due to a lack of drainage in the environment. So many areas in the metropolis are also affected by flooding; the government should find a lasting solution to this perennial flooding challenge,” she said.
Motorists also faced significant challenges, spending hours navigating the heavily flooded roads, particularly from Alapere to the Third Mainland Bridge. The Iyana-Oworo-Olopomeji area heading towards the Third Mainland Bridge experienced severe flooding, resulting in heavy traffic that stretched back to Alapere.