It’s becoming the same old story in Ibadan, heavy rain, flooded streets, lost lives, and property swept away. On Tuesday evening, the city was once again a victim of its own unplanned infrastructure as floodwaters ravaged the Joyce-B/Mobil area. The result? One person dead, two missing, and residents left to pick up the pieces.
The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) South-West Coordinator, Kadir Olanrewaju, inspected the scene on Wednesday. He confirmed the obvious, the flood was caused by “improper drainage channelisation.” It’s a line we’ve heard countless times, but is anyone actually listening? Olanrewaju’s assessment boiled down to a sad reality, the volume of water was just too much for the weak, narrow drains in the area.
Of course, the solution NEMA offers is almost laughable. Olanrewaju suggested people “move away” before the next big rain turns the place into a full-blown disaster zone. Right, because it’s so easy for people to just abandon their homes, jobs, and lives. Maybe the authorities should consider actually fixing the problem before dishing out such impractical advice.
One resident, Solomon Agboro, provided a firsthand account of the chaos. His family barely escaped as the flood submerged the ground floor of their home. They scrambled upstairs while watching their property get washed away. Agboro, understandably, called on the government to finally step in and create proper drainage systems.
For resident Oni Bishola, Tuesday’s flood wasn’t her first experience with Ibadan’s recurring flood problem. In fact, she’s been living in the area for four years and has dealt with flooding every single year. But this time, she said it was the worst she’d ever seen. Gas cookers, TVs, compressors, mattresses—all ruined. Her story mirrors that of countless others in the area, forced to endure the annual devastation of watching their possessions destroyed while waiting for a government that never seems to act.
And it’s not just homes that were affected. The flood took down the fence of a building under construction near Calvary Heritage School in Felele and turned the front of FCMB at Idi-Odo junction into a river. As usual, the city’s roads were thrown into chaos, particularly around Ring Road, where vehicles struggled to navigate through the waterlogged streets.
All this could have been prevented. The lack of proper drainage systems in Ibadan is nothing new. It’s a ticking time bomb that goes off with every major downpour. Yet, year after year, the same tragedies unfold, and the same shallow promises are made. Residents like Bishola and Agboro are left to beg for help, while the authorities keep insisting that the solution is as simple as “moving away.”
Olanrewaju’s warning is an urgent one, if the issue isn’t addressed soon, future floods will be even more devastating. As always, the ball is in the government’s court. Will Governor Seyi Makinde and the Ibadan South-West Local Government finally step up and create the proper drainage systems that could save lives? Or will they continue to let the people of Ibadan suffer through flood after flood, hoping that next time, they might be lucky enough to escape with their lives and a few belongings intact?
