LAGOS: Tens of thousands of people have fled the flood-affected areas in central Nigeria, the Red Cross told media on Sunday.
According to reports two major rivers have flooded across Nigeria displacing a large number of people.
Rescue workers in Kogi State have been trying to help residents to move away from the confluence of the Niger and Benue rivers to camps or nearby villages.
The Red Cross disaster management officer in Kogi, Umar Mahmud has said that there are more than 60,000 people displaced and about 60,000 hectares of land is under water.
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“The situation is very bad now as the Niger River is increasing,” Mahmud said.
Information commissioner of Kogi state, Kingsley Femi Fanwo told media that displacement camps were becoming overcrowded and more than one million people are estimated to be in the affected areas.
The floods have been affecting the African state’s densely populated areas for mast many months. Fanwo said in the Ibaji district, more than three-quarters of the land has been inundated.
Nigeria often witnesses floods during the May-to-November rainy season but there are fears this year could be worse than 2022 when more than 500 people died. Floods in Maiduguri, city of Borno states, in September, left at least 37 dead.
