Lagos has again come under threat of severe flooding following the
alarm that the violent tidal waves are on the increase across the
coastal areas.
Hence, Lagosians who reside near the beaches have been warned to
vacate their home to avert recurrence of ocean surge disaster, which
claimed 15 lives last year.
Lekki, Alpha and Elegushi beaches and their environs have already
been declared danger zones for residents and fun seekers due to severe
tidal and violent waves.
The tidal waves had last year levelled the Kuramo Beach and swept
away fun seekers, fishermen and people occupying illegal shanties at the
beach front.
National Mirror gathered that the surge,
which occurred about 3:30a.m. yesterday and lasted till 6a.m. had moved
encroached at least 800metres inland around Jakande Estate in Lekki.
An official of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, LASEMA,
who did not want his name mentioned, confirmed the incident, saying the
agency had been on ground to sensitise people to leave the affected
areas.
He said: “We thank God nobody died so far but the tide is rising.
There is likelihood that if people don’t stay away from the place, it
may have devastating effect on those around.
“They should heed warnings and stay away from the place particularly
tourists who may come to the beach ocean during festive seasons. So,
tourists are urged to stay away for now until they are assured the tide
has gone down.
“For now, those residing along the shore should stay off. Those who
are close to the sea can confirm that there are times the tidal waves
are on the increase but the truth is that scientifically, things are
changing due to climate change and other environmental factors.
“Those who live at Lekki, Alpha and Elugushi beaches and their
environs should vacate the area now because of the likely surge which
could lead to severe flooding.”
Some environmental activists, however, blamed the incident on the
abandoned shipwrecks in the ocean, while others said that the Eko
Atlantic Project could be the major cause of the yearly surge.
The former Executive Director of Environmental Action and Friends of
the Earth Nigeria, Mr. Inimmo Bassey, had criticised the multi-billion
dollar project, saying the project lacked popular, transparent and
approved environmental impact assessment and might not withstand the
impact of the global warming due to rise in the sea level.
Bassey noted that Nigeria, as a coastal nation, is vulnerable to
global warming impact, saying if the ocean rises one or two metre above
the current level, the entire project will be a waste.
He had said: “So, basically, because the coastline is vulnerable, we
do know that global warming is not a myth, it is a thing that is
happening now.
“So, expanding the city into the ocean is causing danger, it is
wasteful investment and may not portend any return of investment to
those who are putting their money there.
“We should be looking for alternative way of investment. They should be an alternative location.
“If people want to do that kind of projects, they will always have
argument that sound reasonable, don’t forget that when the oil companies
first came to Nigeria, they said they could drill without causing oil
spillage. But here we are talking of sea level rise.”
LASEMA General Manager, Dr. Olufemi Oke- Osanyintolu, attributed
accidents and disasters during festive periods to nonchalant attitude
and carelessness of people during celebrations, urging parents to warned
their kids venture to play at dangerous places.
Osanyintolu, however, assured that LASEMA, the Lagos State Fire and
Safety Service, the Lagos State Ambulance Service, LASAMBUS, the Lagos
State Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA, the Nigerian Police Force,
NPF, and other agencies involved in the management of emergencies in the
state had been put on red alert to secure and protect the lives and
properties of residents in the state.
The general manager also warned people who are in the habit of
sending false alarm to the emergency call centre and through the social
networks, thereby creating panic and unnecessary tension, to desist from
doing so.
Recently, the Lagos State Commissioner for Waterfront Infrastructure
Development, Mr. Adesegun Oniru, had said that the state would require
N440 billion to protect its shoreline, covering 87 kilometres, from
coastal erosion and degradation.
Speaking at the 2013 Annual Distinguished Lecture of the Nigerian
Institution of Civil Engineers, the commissioner had hinted that the
erosion of Lagos’ shoreline degenerated as a result of over 200
abandoned vessels/ shipwrecks littering the coastline, stressing that
efforts to persuade federal agency in charge to remove them had not been
successful.
The abandoned vessels, he noted, posed a great danger to the shoreline and marine environment.
Oniru, revealed that the state government had spent over N38 billion
on the restoration of its shoreline damaged by coastal erosion
occasioned by frequent ocean surge.
He said the restoration work, which started from the back of Eko
Atlantic City project to Alpha Beach, covered seven kilometres stretch
of the shoreline.
Despite the fact that the shoreline being ravaged by coastal erosion
is the boundary of Nigeria, the commissioner said that the Federal
Government had been passive in finding solution to the problem.
Oniru said: “The Federal Government has not contributed anything to help the state government to solve the problem.
“President Goodluck Jonathan was at the scene of coastal erosion of
Alpha Beach two years ago and promised to help the state government to
solve the problem. Up till now, we are still expecting the promise to be
fulfilled.”
He explained that without the Eko Atlantic City project, the whole of
Victoria Island and Ikoyi would have been swept away by the ocean
surge.
The commissioner recalled how wild storm from the Atlantic Ocean, as a
result of rise in sea level, ravaged the Bar Beach in 2006 and how the
state government came to rescue.
He said: “We all saw what happened at Kuramo Beach last year; strong
waves from the ocean swept away people and their makeshifts. We don’t
want a repeat of this and that is why the state government is passionate
about finding permanent solution to ocean surge of the entire area.”
Oniru suggested ways to combat problems of erosion of the shoreline,
including the use of sand saver, sand reclamation, sea wall, X-blocks,
sand bags, floodgate and groynes (barrier) protection.
He said the method adopted by the state government to solve the Bar Beach erosion was the use of groynes
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