I run a low-fee private school, Gleam Stars, in Amukoko. Our environment here is prone to flooding whenever there is heavy rain. The flooding experience we have had in our community is devastating, as businesses have to shut down and children can’t go to school. Motorists can’t ply the roads. Houses are also always affected.
The canals in this area are blocked. There are people around who throw trash into the canals, and the government has not been responsive in dredging them. So, whenever it rains, there is no channel for the water to flow. Even the bridge linking our community is always submerged in water because of the blocked canals. Because of that, water floods into people’s homes and properties. The streets will not be motorable for that period of time.
My own property is my place of business, which is my school. For mitigation, I ensure my students always go out once a month for environmental sanitation. As a school owner, I also educate our neighbours on the dangers of dumping their waste into the canals.
One of our projects was featured on a national TV station, where they spoke about what our students are doing in our community, including clearing the gutters and roads, and also sensitising the people on the causes of flooding and how they can help mitigate the effects. We also engage our community leaders to talk to the people and sensitise them.
Whenever there is a flood, we have to lock the school for three to four days. We won’t open until the flood is abated. The one in July was so devastating that we lost over ₦3,000,000 worth of books. We had just received a supply of textbooks and printed notebooks. Unfortunately, they were submerged. However, thank God the children were not in school. We had to lock up the school for days until the water dried.
Apart from the books, our laboratory equipment and computers were also destroyed by the flood. That is how it has affected us this year.
Our request to the government is that they should prioritise dredging the canals. That is just the issue. Because all the drainages in our environment are channelled into the canal. The government should try as much as possible to monitor the work. They should also engage in or enforce sanitation such that people will stop disposing of their trash into the canals.
I’m not speaking or making this demand for my own self. If it is to be for myself alone, I could have said the government should help us with funding to replace the spoiled books and gadgets. That will only be a kind of temporary relief for me, but I want the good of everyone in the community. The government should pay attention to the canal so that when it rains, there will be a channel for the water to flow.
As narrated by: Opeyemi Olatunji (Amukoko, Lagos).
This snippet is published as part of a series, Lagos Under Water.
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