The official death toll after deadly floods hit the Nigerian town of Mokwa on Thursday has risen to more than 200, officials say.
Another 500 people are still missing in the town in the central Niger State however, local official Musa Kimboku told the BBC that rescue efforts had ceased because authorities no longer believe anyone could still be found alive.
The floods, said to be worst in the area for 60 years, swept through the Mokwa districts of Tiffin Maza and Anguwan Hausawa after torrential rains.
In an effort to prevent disease in the area, authorities will soon start to dig out corpses buried underground, Mokwa’s district head Muhammadu Aliyu said.
Recounting scenes of catastrophe, local residents told the BBC that they saw their homes and family members get washed away.
One man, Adamu Yusuf, lost his wife and newborn baby.
“I watched helplessly as water washed away my family. I survived because I could swim,” he told the BBC.
Another resident, Saliu Sulaiman, said the floods had left him homeless and destroyed some of his cash business profits.
“I lost at least $1,500 to the floods. It was the proceeds from the sale of my farm produce the previous day. I contemplated going back into the room to get it, but the pressure of the water scared me.”
Some local residents have said that the flooding was so devastating because a nearby dam had burst, however the authorities have not confirmed this.
Residents said the pressure of the floodwater was so intense that bodies had been washed up in the town of Rabba, at least an hour’s drive from Mokwa.
Mokwa’s Deputy Vice-Chairman Musa Kimboku said they had told neighbouring villages to bury “any corpse that they find.”
District head Mr Aliyu said some bodies were unrecoverable because they had gone “through the River Niger”.
On Sunday, the National Emergency Management Agency (Nema) announced it had started the process of providing relief packages to people affected.
The agency added in a post on Facebook that roads and bridges were also affected by the flood, which has had a knock-on effect on the local economy and traffic.
The Nigerian Red Cross also released a statement on Friday saying the floods had caused “significant loss of life and widespread distress”.
Floods are not uncommon during the Nigerian rainy season, which lasts from April until October.
In 2024, Nigeria experienced flooding from heavy rain which caused deaths and drove people from their homes.
There was also severe flooding in 2022, when more than 600 people died and 1.3 million were displaced.
By BBC News
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