Floods kill 10 people in north Nigerian state

ABUJA, Sept. 7 (Xinhua) -- At least 10 people have been killed by recent floods occasioned by torrential rainfall in Nigeria's northern state of Bauchi, a local relief agency official said Wednesday.

Several houses and hectares of farmlands were also destroyed by the floods which have affected 19 out of the 20 local government areas in Bauchi, said Adams Nayola, a spokesman for the State Emergency Management Agency, at a press briefing in Bauchi city, the state's capital.

Of all the affected local government areas, 12 have been identified as the worst-hit, Nayola said, noting the relief agency was still gathering data on farmlands and houses destroyed so far by the disaster.

According to local authorities in Bauchi, there had been heavy rainfall across the state since late August.

Thousands of residents had already taken refuge elsewhere, Nayola said, adding the flood totally cut off some communities.

"We are going today (Wednesday) to Jama'are and Misau local government areas, as well as the Zaki local government area, to assess the level of damage done by the floods there," the official said, identifying those areas as some of the worst-hit.

Aside from the ongoing intense public enlightenment urging people in the flood-prone areas to relocate to safer grounds, Nayola said the relief agency had begun the sharing of relief items to the victims of flooding in the state.

Nigerian authorities in May issued an alert to 32 out of the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory of the country, warning of severe flooding this year.