Property owners and inhabitants in Ogun State’s Area 8, OPIC Estate, Agbara, Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government Area are currently calculating their damages due to flooding.
Residents stated the neighborhood has been flooded as a result of the recent heavy rains.
According to them, some properties have been submerged by water, leaving many people with little choice but to shift to a safer location.
The victims described their predicament as a ‘impending calamity’ in a letter to Governor Dapo Abiodun.
The letter, co-signed by Estate Chairman Adebowale Odunayo and Assistant Secretary Iziokhai Ohioze, drew government attention to “the ravaging effect of incessant flooding that our community has been experiencing over time.”
According to them, the issue was “formally reported to OPIC Management on several occasions, but each visit ended with promises, which have remained unfulfilled, leaving residents to the vagaries of nature.”
They warned that the frequency and severity of flooding in Area 8 had increased significantly in recent years.
They claimed that the lack of drainage systems exacerbated the problem during downpours, “resulting in water entering our homes and causing damage to the foundations, walls, and interiors of our buildings.”
This, they claim, “not only causes financial losses for us as property owners, but also jeopardizes the structural integrity of our homes and causes psychological nightmares when there is an impending rain.”
While admitting that flooding is a natural occurrence, others believe that it can be mitigated with a well-compacted road network and effective channelization.
“Your Excellency Sir, please kindly come to our rescue. Our lives and properties are being challenged negatively. Our safety and in particular that of our children, as well as the aged among us, is being put in jeopardy.
“Sir, we solicit your approval for an immediate upgrade of the entire drainage architecture of the area. We equally crave the indulgence of Your Excellency for the rehabilitation of the road within the OPIC Estate, particularly Roads 411, 800, 808, 81 which we believe if tarred, would complement the drainage system,” they pleaded.