Residents of Gold Crescent-Bungalow Scheme, in the Oke Afa area of Ejigbo Local Council Development Area, have lamented persistent flooding occasioned by the poor condition of drainage in the area.
A downpour-induced flood in the area on Sunday afternoon trapped many residents in their homes as navigation became difficult, and further worsened by an abandoned drainage construction.
The Crescent has over the years been facing the challenge of flooding with a series of havoc recorded including loss of lives in the past.
In September 2023, one person was killed in the estate after a heavy rainfall. The development led to the Lagos State Ministry of Environment drafting construction workers to fix the area’s drainage system.
However, the project, which according to the residents, has been abandoned by the contractors, has worsened the ordeal of the residents.
The chairman of the estate association, Emmanuel Ezeugwu, while speaking with BREAKINGNG, said only about 45 minutes of rainfall led to the flooding captured in the videos by our reporter.
“This is from just Sunday’s less than 45 minutes of rainfall. These images were shot at Bokku shop beside First Bank at NNPC Bustop Ejigbo,” he said while sharing other photos. “All the waters are headed for Gold Crescent, our estate.”
The chairman further said, “We have a peculiar problem and it is that in the whole of this locality, all the way from Ejibo police station, the NNPC depot, all the waters that gather there from Gate, First Bank, and Catholic Church, they all end up here in our estate, through the street.
“The result of that, as you can see how the street is, is massive flooding, road degradation. Now, this problem has led to instances where all the homes on the Crescent are flooded. A life was lost, one woman who lived on Grace Street here, was carried away by this flood in 2018.”
He added that after the estate complained to the state government, the drainage contract was awarded “but we don’t know if the contract has brought us succour, or has brought us more problems.”
Motorists were seen maneuvering the flooded areas even as pedestrians waited for the water to recede.
The residents told our reporter that it was important for the government to come to their aid as the flooding has been giving them tough times.
The spokesperson for the Lagos State Ministry of Environment, Kunle Adeshina, when contacted, said the contractor working on the drainage would soon return to the area.
“The contractor is asking for an upward review of funds and a reviewed budget has been taken to the governor. The governor has approved the new bill. So very soon, he will return to the site.”
He appealed to the resident’s patience blaming paucity of funds for the pause of the work.
