The Lagos State Government says residents will keep experiencing flash flooding due to the realities of climate change and other environmental factors.
This is as the government maintained its commitment to ramp up infrastructure to provide lasting solutions across the state.
The state Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, made this statement during a television interview on Monday.
Wahab explained that in the last two years, the ministry had cleaned over 50 kilometres of secondary collectors and dredged or maintained about 38 primary channels across Lagos.
He also recalled the recent 14-hour torrential rainfall that affected parts of Ikorodu, noting that remedial measures were immediately deployed.
The commissioner further stated that a contractor had dammed the downstream area to allow construction to proceed, but was instructed to free it once the rains began so that storm water could recede.
According to him, the Nigerian Meteorological Agency, NiMEt, had given an early forecast in March, prompting the ministry to begin massive advocacy in April. Residents were briefed multiple times that rainfall this year would surpass last year’s levels.
He stressed that climate change is a global reality, citing examples of countries recently experiencing unprecedented flooding.
Speaking on drainage infrastructure, Wahab explained that various contracts awarded in 2024 have an 18- to 24-month lifespan, and the government would not compromise quality for speed.
The commissioner noted that temporary measures, including pumping stations on Lagos Island, would continue to mitigate flooding until permanent solutions are completed.
Ongoing projects include System 44 in Lekki, System 44A, and the three-phase System 1 (Odo–Iyalaro) project, which channels stormwater from Ikeja, Opebi, and Sheraton areas into the lagoon.
“We expected the rains and had resilient measures in place. We have been doing massive advocacy and ramping up drainage infrastructure statewide. We won’t lie to residents – flash flooding will occur, but we are working to contain it,” Wahab said.
