More than 150 people have been killed and thousands displaced after floods devastated parts of central Nigeria, local authorities said, as rescue teams continue to recover bodies and search for the missing.
The flooding struck the rural town of Mokwa in Niger State following torrential rains that began late on Wednesday and continued into Thursday.
The death toll has risen to 151 after more bodies were recovered nearly 10km (6 miles) from Mokwa, said Ibrahim Audu Husseini, a spokesman for the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) on Saturday.
At least 3,018 people have been displaced, while 265 houses were “completely destroyed” in the floods, he said, adding that many victims were believed to have been swept down the Niger River, warning that the toll could still rise.
President Bola Tinubu extended his condolences overnight and said search-and-rescue operations were ongoing with the support of Nigeria’s security forces.
“Relief materials and temporary shelter assistance are being deployed without delay,” he wrote in a post on social media.
“We lost everything, the families. We don’t have anywhere else to go, the property has gone,” Mohammed Tanko, a local, told media. “We lost at least 15 from this house.”
Another survivor said: “I escaped with only my nightdress. Right now, I can’t even identify where our home used to be.”
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