Historical Review of Flood Occurrence in Nigeria and Some Possible Solutions

Abubakar Abbas Adamu, Salisu Dan'azumi

Abstract


In recent years, environmental disasters have increasingly threatened the globe, with flooding emerging as one of the most devastating natural hazards due to its rapid onset, unpredictability, and challenges in emergency response. Flooding poses significant risks to physical, social, economic, and environmental systems. In Nigeria, flooding has become an annual occurrence, profoundly affecting human lives and infrastructure. The country experiences three primary types of flooding: river flooding, urban flooding, and coastal flooding. This paper examines various flood incidents in Nigeria over the past four decades (1994–2024) to analyze their frequency and patterns. Findings indicate that floods have become a recurrent annual phenomenon, affecting multiple states across the federation. To mitigate the adverse effects of flooding, it is crucial to establish comprehensive early warning systems nationwide and implement improved methodologies for reservoir operations and the maintenance of hydraulic structures.


Full Text:

PDF

References


Abdulrahim, A., Gulumbe, B. H., & Liman, U. U. (2022). A catastrophic flood in Nigeria, its impact on health facilities and exacerbations of infectious diseases. Pan African Medical Journal One Health, 9.

Adegbola, A. A., & Jolayemi, J. K. (2012). Historical rainfall-runoff modeling of river Ogunpa, Ibadan, Nigeria. Indian Journal of Science and Technology, 2725-2728.

Adelekan, I. O., & Asiyanbi, A. P. (2016). Flood risk perception in flood-affected communities in Lagos, Nigeria. Natural Hazards, 80, 445-469.

Adeoti, A. I., Olayide, O. E., & Coster, A. S. (2010). Flooding and welfare of fishers’ households in Lagos state, Nigeria. Journal of Human Ecology, 32(3), 161-167.

Adeoye, N. O., Ayanlade, A., & Babatimehin, O. (2009). Climate change and menace of floods in Nigerian cities: socio-economic implications. Advances in Natural and Applied Sciences, 3(3), 369-378.

Aderogba, K. A. (2012). Global warming and challenges of floods in Lagos metropolis, Nigeria. Academic Research International, 2(1), 448-468.

Agbonkhese, O., Agbonkhese, E. G., Aka, E. O., Joe-Abaya, J., Ocholi, M., & Adekunle, A. (2014). Flood menace in Nigeria: impacts, remedial and management strategies. Civil and Environmental Research, 6(4), 32-40.

Akanle, O., Adejare, G. S., & Oloyede, M. O. (2015). Ethnography of flooding in Ibadan metropolis, Nigeria: Agencies of flooding in developing countries. Ibadan Journal of Sociology, 2, 5-31.

Aldardasawi, A. M., & Eren, B. (2021). Floods and their impact on the environment. Academic Perspective Procedia, 4(2), 42-49.

Allafta, H., & Opp, C. (2021). GIS-based multi-criteria analysis for flood prone areas mapping in the trans-boundary Shatt Al-Arab basin, Iraq-Iran. Geomatics, Natural Hazards and Risk, 12(1), 2087-2116.

Armah, F. A., Yawson, D. O., Yengoh, G. T., Odoi, J. O., & Afrifa, E. K. (2010). Impact of floods on livelihoods and vulnerability of natural resource dependent communities in Northern Ghana. Water, 2(2), 120-139.

Askew, A. J. (1997). Water in the international decade for natural disaster reduction. IAHS-AISH publication, 3-11.

Ataraire, D. O., & Ezeomedo, I. C. The Environmental Effects of Seasonal Flooding in Ughelli North Local Government Area, Delta State, Nigeria.

Bashir, O. O., Oludare, A. H., Johnson, O. O., & Aloysius, B. (2012). Floods of fury in Nigerian cities. Journal of Sustainable Development, 5(7), 69.

Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters, (2024) EM-DAT Emergency Event Database. Available online at www.emdata.be (Accessed on May 6, 2024)

Djamaluddin, I., Indrayani, P., & Caronge, M. A. (2020). A GIS analysis approach for flood vulnerability and risk assessment index models at sub-district scale. In IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science (Vol. 419, No. 1, p. 012019). IOP Publishing.

Egbinola, C. N., Olaniran, H. D., & Amanambu, A. C. (2017). Flood management in cities of developing countries: the example of Ibadan, Nigeria. Journal of Flood Risk Management, 10(4), 546-554.

Eze, J. N., Vogel, C., & Ibrahim, P. A. (2018). Assessment of social vulnerability of households to floods in Niger State, Nigeria. International Letters of Social and Humanistic Sciences, 84, 22-34.

Ezugwu, C. N. (2013). Dam development and disasters in Nigeria. Int J Eng Res Technol (IJERT), 2(9), 960-977.

Gwary, D. (2008, May). Climate change, food security and Nigeria Agriculture. In Workshop on the challenges of climate change for Nigeria. NISER. 19th-20th May.

Komolafe, A. A., Adegboyega, S. A. A., & Akinluyi, F. O. (2015). A review of flood risk analysis in Nigeria. American journal of environmental sciences, 11(3), 157.

Mfon, I. E., Ogike, M. C., Eteng, S. U., Etim, N. M., (2022) Causes and Effects of Flooding in Nigeria A Review East Asian Journal of Multidisciplinary Research (EAJMR) Vol. 1 No. 9 ISSN 1977-1792

Mohammed, M., & Kawo, A., (2014) Disaster Vulnerability and Resilience of Urban Residents A Case of Rainstorm Disaster Risk Management in Bida Nigeria Journal of Environment and Earth Science ISSN 2225-0948 Vol. 4, No 17

Naeem, A., Zaheer, Z., Tabassum, S., Nazir, A., & Naeem, F. (2023). Diseases caused by floods with a spotlight on the present situation of unprecedented floods in Pakistan: a short communication. Annals of Medicine and Surgery, 85(6), 3209-3212.

Nasir, M. J., Iqbal, J., & Ahmad, W. (2020). Flash flood risk modeling of swat river sub-watershed: a comparative analysis of morphometric ranking approach and El-Shamy approach. Arabian Journal of Geosciences, 13, 1-19.

NEMA, (2022) National Emergency Management Agency Press Release Flood Situation in Nigeria Flood Data.

NEMA. (2013), National Disaster Management Framework: Prevention and Mitigation Private Sector Programmes Rehabilitation and Reintegration, Risk Reduction Planning roles and Responsibilities Search and Rescue SEMA and LEMA Strategies. 62.

OCHA 2006 Nigeria Flood (available at https://relief web.int/disaster/fl-2022-000271-nga Accessed 3rd February 2024)

OCHA 2010 Nigeria Flood (available at https://relief web.int/disaster/fl-2022-000271-nga Accessed 3rd February 2024)

OCHA 2022 Nigeria Flood (available at https://relief web.int/disaster/fl-2022-000271-nga Accessed 3rd February 2024)

OCHA 2024 Flood Maiduguri MMC and Jere Flash Update (available at https://www.unocha.org/nigeria access on 18th September, 2024)

Odiana, S., Mbee, D. M., & Akpoghomeh, O. S. (2022) An Overview of Flood Disaster Management in Nigeria African Scientist Vol. 23, No. 1

Ologunorisa, T. E., & Abawua, M. J. (2005). Flood risk assessment: a review. Journal of Applied Sciences and Environmental Management, 9(1), 57-63.

Olorunfemi, F. B., & Adebimpe, R. U. (2008). Sustainable disaster risk reduction in Nigeria: Lessons for developing countries. African Research Review, 2(2), 187-217.

Oluwaseyi, A. B. (2017). Plant genetic resources (PGR) in Nigeria and the reality of climate change: A review. Asian J. Environ. Ecol, 2, 1-24.

Ralph-Imoniruwe, E. O. B., & Idama, M. O. (2023). Impact of Flooding in Delta State: A Sociocultural Perspective. JALINGO JOURNAL OF SOCIAL AND MANAGEMENT SCIENCES, 4(3), 145-160.

Ruji, E. M. (2007, March). Floodplain inundation simulation using 2d hydrodynamic modelling approach. ITC.

Schelfaut, K., Pannemans, B., Van der Craats, I., Krywkow, J., Mysiak, J., & Cools, J. (2011). Bringing flood resilience into practice: the FREEMAN project. Environmental Science & Policy, 14(7), 825-833.

Shu’aibu, A., (2020). Flood Reduction Through Risk and Vulnerability Assessment and Mapping in Hadejia River Basin, Nigeria. Published Msc Thesis Pan African University Institute of Water and Energy Sciences.

Talbot, C. J., Bennett, E. M., Cassell, K., Hanes, D. M., Minor, E. C., Paerl, H., ... & Xenopoulos, M. A. (2018). The impact of flooding on aquatic ecosystem services. Biogeochemistry, 141, 439-461.

Umar, N., & Gray, A. (2023). Flooding in Nigeria: a review of its occurrence and impacts and approaches to modelling flood data. International Journal of Environmental Studies, 80(3), 540-561.

Umo, I. S., Patience, E. N., Ukwe, I. G., 2021 Climate Variability and Issues in Flood Disaster Risk Awareness in Nigerian Communities NIPES Journal of Science and Technology Research 3(4) ISSN 2682-5821

UNICEF (2024) Maiduguri Flood Response Situation Overview (Available at http://www.unicef.org/appeals/nigeria/situationreport access on 23rd September, 2024).


Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.