Flood Alert: Nigerian Authorities Issue Flood Warning as Cameroon Prepares Controlled Releases from Lagdo Dam - 11 States at Risk

Authorities in Nigeria have raised concerns about potential flooding in 11 states after Cameroon announced plans to begin regulated releases from the Lagdo Dam. This action follows heavy rainfall across West and Central Africa.

Lagdo dam Camerooon

Umar Mohammed, Director-General of the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NHSA), reassured the public that the releases would be gradual to minimize the risk of severe flooding downstream in Nigeria. "There is no need for alarm," he stated, explaining that the discharges would increase progressively over the next seven days.

“The water discharge is anticipated to progressively escalate to 1,000m³/s over the next seven days based on the inflow from the upstream Garoua River, which serves as the primary source into the reservoir and a significant tributary to the Benue River,” Mohammed said.

The threat of flooding in Nigeria’s northern and southern regions is heightened by the experience of 2022, when similar releases from the dam resulted in the deaths of over 600 people and economic damages amounting to $9 billion, according to the Nigerian National Bureau of Statistics.

The NHSA also emphasized that this latest notification of water releases follows recent torrential rains in Maiduguri, which caused severe flooding, the collapse of a bridge, and the release of wild animals, including lions and reptiles. The floods also allowed over 200 inmates to escape from a city prison, with the death toll standing at 38.

2022 was officially designated as the year with the worst flood in Nigeria

Aid workers are already facing challenges, with one of the International Rescue Committee’s nutrition centers cut off by the flooding. According to Babatunde Ojei, IRC’s country director, “Twenty-six children were evacuated from the center.”

President Bola Tinubu, during a recent visit to Maiduguri, expressed deep concern: “May Allah help us stop the tragedy; the situation that we find ourselves in, the environmental problem and climate change,” he said, echoing the growing fears surrounding extreme weather events driven by climate change.

With more extreme rainfall expected due to global climate disruption, the Nigerian government had already warned of potential flooding in 29 states earlier this year. As of September 10, an estimated 1.3 million hectares of land have been submerged, including vast areas of farmland.

Local communities, especially in the conflict-ridden northeast, are now facing compounded hardships.

In Maiduguri, where Boko Haram insurgency began, residents like Aisha Aliyu are grappling with both the threat of flooding and the spread of diseases like cholera in displacement camps. Aliyu, who is currently staying in one of eight camps for flood survivors, expressed the gravity of the situation: “I never pray for even my enemy to experience such a thing.”

Flooding in Maiduguri, Borno State 2024

As Nigeria braces for the full impact of these floods, the government, international organizations, and local communities are all scrambling to prevent a humanitarian disaster.