The flooded portion of the Abuja-Lokoja highway which led to the closure of the road on Sunday has been recovered through the joint efforts of Gitto, Julius Berger and RCC construction companies. Consequently, the road was re-opened at about 7:45 pm yesterday, Special Adviser to the minister of works on media Tony Ikpasaja has said. The Abuja-Lokoja highway, a major road that links the Federal Capital territory with many parts of southern Nigeria was closed to motorists on Sunday by the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) for safety reasons.
Hundreds of people travelling from the north to south and vice versa were trapped on opposite sides of the River Niger since Sunday. Passengers travelling to Abuja and other parts of the North now pay N500 to board an engine boat from Mpata area to Banda, where they board vehicles to Abuja.
Some motorists were said to have paid as much as between fifteen thousand naira to be ferried across with their vehicles.
Consequent upon the blockade of the highway, the FRSC gave alternative routes as follows: “vehicles coming from Lagos – Okene – Lokoja- Abuja should use Okene – Ajaokuta – Ayangba – Ankpa – Makurdi Lafiya- Akwanga- Abuja.
A statement from the office of the FRSC in Lokoja also said: “Those coming from the South-East should use Otukpa – Makurdi route. The ones from Abuja to Lokoja should use Akwanga – Lafiya- Makurdi – Ankpa – Okene down to Lokoja with massive deployment of personnel to the alternative routes to ensure free flow of traffic.”
The Minister of Works Arc Mike Onolememen on Monday said during his visit to the flooded location, promised Nigerians that the road would be recovered in three days.
He thereafter directed the three construction companies to work day and night to effect quick recovery of the road to reduce the agony of motorists.
Our correspondent who was at the Banda area of the road yesterday in company of the police observed Gitto, Julius Berger and RCC construction companies working to block the water and open the road.
One engineer with Gitto construction company, Ajani Adeyemo, told Daily Trust that work on the road would be completed last night so that motorists can continue their journeys.
Sector Commander of the FRSC, Muhammed Garba, said yesterday that the road will be re-opened as soon as the job is finished and the corps is satisfied that the road is safe.
Kogi State Police Commissioner, Mr. Muhammed Musa Katsina, said the command had deployed Marine Police to the area to handle water emergency issues.
He maintained that adequate security had also been provided for stranded passengers, vehicles and the construction companies working on the road.
The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) said over 10,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) from Kogi and Benue states are currently taking refuge at different camps after they were sacked from their communities and homes by the floods.
The floods have also sacked hundreds of communities in Taraba, Edo, Bauchi, Jigawa and many other states, claiming lives and property worth billions of naira.
Meanwhile the Kogi State governor Captain Idris Wada yesterday said property worth over N40 Billion have so far been destroyed by the recent flooding in some local government areas of the state.
Wada stated this while taking stock and giving estimates of the damage the flood has done to over a hundred communities of about 2million people.
The governor, who was represented by his deputy Yomi Awoniyi, said the state is still taking inventory of the damage done by the flood, describing it as the worst in 76 years (Since 1936).
He said the actual cost of damage caused by the flood can only be ascertained when the flood would have receded, adding that the amount will likely double the present estimate.
He said the state government has put in place machinery to curtail the effect of the disaster on the people, especially the farm lands which have been submerged.
He said improved seedlings, insecticides, and tractors would be given to farmers free of charge to encourage farming of several variety of crops that may have been destroyed.
He assured the people that efforts by the Federal and State Government is on going to cushion the effects of the flood.
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