Houses, shops, churches, mosques and other property estimated at N4 billion destroyed in Ogun community
THE month had been hot and residents of Papalanto in Ewekoro Local Council of Ogun State had been praying for rain.
So when on Friday, the weather changed as rain clouds gathered, they were happy.
But little did they know that the shower of blessing they hoped for, would wreak havoc on the entire community.
The rain, when it came around 2.00 p.m., did so accompanied by a furious wind that tore through the community, leaving in their wake a trail of destruction.
At present, the people of the community have begun to count their losses as over 80 houses were destroyed, including shops, churches, farms, electricity poles, schools and the only electricity transformer serving the entire community, among others.
Many families have also been rendered homeless with the losses suffered by residents estimated at about N4 billion.
On Saturday, the community was a sorry sight as residents searched through the ruins of what was once their homes and shops to see what items of value they could retrieve.
But items like rice, salt and garri, including cement were thrown away while clothes, chairs and other household items were put in the sun.
It was gathered that a similar incident happened three years ago but the extent of damage then was minimal compared to the present colossal loss.
One of the victims, Mrs. Funmilola Salau, a trader, said the rain was accompanied by a serious whirlwind, which led to the destruction of her shop and other houses, adding that her freezer, foodstuffs and provisions she just bought for sale worth N500,000 were destroyed in the process.
She lamented that the incident was a serious setback to her business because she had nobody who could help her financially.
Another victim, Mr. A. Akinremi, whose five family houses and several shops were damaged, said he was at work when he received telephone calls informing him of the unfortunate incident.
He noted that the rough estimate of the extent of damage on the house would not be less than N3 million because the roofs and glass windows of the houses were destroyed.
The Zonal Community Development Committee (CDC) Chairman, Papalanto Area, Pastor Sunday Gbemisola, who doubles as the Alakoso of the community said he was in Lagos when the disaster occurred and had to rush back to asses the extent of damage.
He added that the CDC members had been moving around to sympathise with the affected people and how to find a lasting solution.
“We have cried out to government officials, the press and other individuals that can help us because over 60 families were affected.
“The Local Government Caretaker Committee Chairman, Sunday Akinyemi and the Secretary to the Local Government came here with a promise to assist us. Our representative in the House ofAssembly too, has promised to come and see things himself,” he said.
He noted that one of the steps taken, as palliative measure, was the provision of a temporary house for the victims, which was inadequate, while others took shelter with their friends and relatives.
He said the minimum cost of repairing each of the houses is estimated at N1.5 million, which would amount to about N4 billion needed to put the affected buildings in good shape.
The traditional ruler of the community, Oba Razaki Famuyiwa, who described the incident as a natural disaster, lamented that it destroyed so many houses, though the rain was not heavy.
He added that despite the assistance he and CDC rendered, the committee still needed the assistance of the state and the Federal Government.