From Chuma Austin,
Enugu
Succour came to the way of the flood victims in Uzo Uwani Local Government Area of Enugu State on Sunday as the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) donated relief materials worth millions of naira to them.
The relief materials, which included food and non-food items were distributed to three agrarian communities of Ojjor, Ogurugu and Igga who were affected by flood in 2020.
Speaking at Ojjor community, Zonal Coordinator of NEMA, Mr. Fred Anusim, said that the flood incidence that destroyed massive farmlands and buildings in the communities occurred on Oct. 3, 2020. Anusim said that the notice of the incidence was brought to the attention of NEMA through the Enugu State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), traditional rulers and other media reports.
According to him, NEMA carried out an assessment of the incidence, which revealed that several buildings and farmlands were affected leading to displacement of residents and dislocation of means of livelihood.
“Please note that the relief materials brought to you today is not to replace what you lost during the flood disaster but to cushion the effect of the unfortunate incident.
“The food items in the relief materials included: 456 bags of 12.5kg rice; 456 bags of 25kg beans; 456 bags of 12.5kg garri; 46 kegs of 20 litres palm oil; 79 cartons of seasoning and 38 cartons of tin tomatoes.
“The non-food items are: 912 pieces of blankets; 912 pieces of foam mattresses; 59 cartons of bath soap; 456 pieces of wax print; 624 bags of cement; 624 bundles of roofing sheets; 69 bags of 3 inches nails; 208 packets of zinc nails; 624 pieces of ceiling boards and 700 pieces of children’s wear,” he said.
Responding, the Traditional Ruler of Ojjor community, Igwe Emmanuel Umunna, thanked the Federal Government for bringing succour to his subjects affected by the 2020 flood.
“We are grateful to the Federal Government and NEMA that took the pain notwithstanding that we are at the extreme and boundary area of the state to remember and locate us with these relief materials,’’ Umunna said.
One of the victims of the flood, Mr. Fidel Okiji, thanked the Federal Government for the relief materials as well as its timely delivery.
“I believe this will go a long way to ameliorate the hardship my family had been going through since the flood incident,’’ Okiji, who is a beneficiary of the relief materials, said.
Another victim and beneficiary of the relief materials, Mrs. Angelina Ndibe, prayed to God to bless the Federal Government and NEMA officials for coming to her aid when she lost all her crops to flood.
