The Kwara State Government has warned residents against indiscriminate dumping of refuse to prevent flooding.
The government however sympathised with the residents of Ilorin whose houses were flooded as a result of the unusual downpour on Thursday night.
This is contained in a statement jointly signed by Mrs Remilekun Banigbe, the Commissioner for Environment, and Mr Rotimi Iliasu, the Commissioner for Works and Transport, in Ilorin.
The government specifically commiserated with residents of Pakata Area in Ilorin West Local Government Area where a mud house caved in anf killed a woman in the process.
“We beseech Almighty God to grant the dead eternal rest and comfort the family. It was indeed an unfortunate incident,” it said.
According to the statement, different teams of experts and administrators from the state Ministries of Environment as well as Works and Transport had visited the affected areas to assess the situation and make recommendations.
The government had started taking proactive measures to attend to the Akerebiata bridge that had partially collapsed as a result of the downpour, it said.
“We appeal to citizens to desist from indiscriminate dumping of refuse in drainages and all waterways.
“Similarly, some people who had long built houses on waterways are another major reason that flood is happening, couple with the increase in rainfalls nationwide.
“Also, incessant dumping of waste in our drainage remains a major reason for the flooding, as refuse continues to block free flow of water,” the statement read in part.
The government noted that no matter the number of drainage constructed and number of times such drainages are desilted, continuous indiscriminate dumping of refuse will always subject everyone to avoidable losses, hardship and embarrassment.
It therefore advised residents of Akerebiata and all other road users to make use of the alternative route of Gambari-Sobi road pending completion of the repair works on the bridge.
“The government regrets the inconveniences it might cause to everyone,” it stated.