The Director-General of the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA), Mohammed Seidu, has said that the Niger-Benue Confluence (Lokoja) flooding was as a result of the contravention of the natural boundary laws by the communities.
Seidu said this while presenting a summary report? on the September/October, 2012 sacking of the community by flood to journalists, yesterday, in Abuja.
The DG said, “The analysis from the Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) Satellite data shows that the flood did not go out of the traditional boundary of the flood plain. This means that the roads passing through the areas actually passed through the flood plains.”
He said, “Those that constructed the road may have made a mistake by building it on the flood plains because of the draught in the 70’s and 80’s which dried up parts of the river.”
Among the recommendations of the report was the need to develop a flood contingency master plan for flood plains in Nigeria, to forestall future re-occurrence of flooding.
It also recommended that it was imperative to construct a flyover bridge between Banda village and Lokoja, while Lokoja-Ganaja road should be raised above the present elevation to reinforce and reinforced.
It further said that there was need for a comprehensive mapping inventory of all flood plains in Nigeria for proper planning, awareness and enlightenment of flood prone communities in the country.