Severe erosion has inflicted a devastating blow to the Onitsha-Owerri Road, resulting in a complete cutoff of the crucial route.
Transportation has been severely disrupted, and the safety of motorists and pedestrians who rely on this road hangs in the balance.
The gravity of the erosion is vividly revealing sections of the road washed away, leaving behind treacherous chasms and impassable terrain.
This erosion catastrophe extends its reach beyond mere infrastructure damage, impacting the surrounding communities that now face arduous challenges in accessing vital services and resources.
The urgency for immediate action and substantial investment in infrastructure
maintenance and erosion control looms large, demanding attention.
Residents of Oba, located in the Idemili South local government area of Anambra State, have earnestly appealed to Anambra State Governor, Prof Chukwuma Soludo, and President Bola Tinubu, beseeching their
intervention as a landslide has ruthlessly severed the Onitsha-Owerri expressway. The lives of residents hang in the balance, while numerous structures stand at the brink of peril.
Presently, only a single lane remains open on the bustling highway, plunging the area into frustrating traffic congestion.
The landslide, estimated to span a colossal 100 meters in depth and 400 meters in
length, has engulfed the once-stalwart concrete culvert that fought against gully erosion in the region.
Despite the area being cordoned off, no efforts towards reconstruction have been initiated, and ominous cracks have begun to fracture the road several meters away from the renowned Oba junction.
Fears grip the hearts of residents as they contemplate the imminent danger lurking in their vicinity, desperately urging both state and federal authorities to leap into immediate action.
The specter of erosion devouring properties and claiming further land becomes more ominous as the rainy season encroaches upon the region.