Nigeria’s flood kills at least 111 in the town of Northern Market after heavy rain
The long rainy rapids have unleashed a flood in which farmers in northern Nigeria have killed at least 111 people in a market town where farmers sell goods to traders from the south, officials said Friday that they are forecasting a rise in deaths.
Nigeria’s Department of Hydrologic Services did not immediately say that rain fell just after midnight on Thursday in the town of Mokwa in Niger, more than 180 miles west of Abuja, the capital of Africa’s most populous country.
The southeast met dangerous floods with northeastern braces due to a snowstorm
Communities in northern Nigeria are experiencing long, dry spells exacerbated by climate change and excessive rainfall, leading to severe flooding during short rainy seasons.
Social media videos and photos showed floods covered the neighborhood and home, with the roof barely visible above the brown-colored water. His waist was deep in the water, and the residents tried to save what they could or others.
People are watching the collapsed house on May 31, 2025, after a flood that forced thousands of people from a home in Mokuwa, Mokuwa, Nigeria. (Reuters/Stringer)
“We lost a lot of our lives and property, our produce. Those who have their storage spaces have lost it,” said Kazeem Muhammed, a resident of Mokwa.
In addition to the 111 deaths, “more bodies have just been brought in and have not yet been counted,” Ibrahim Audu Husseini, a spokesman for the Niger State Emergency Agency, told the Associated Press by phone on Friday afternoon.
Nearly 380 kilometres (236 miles) west of Abuja, Mokuwa is a major encounter buying beans, onions and other foods from farmers in the south.
Aliki Musa, a community leader at Mokwa, told the AP that the villagers were not used to such floods. “Water is like spiritual waters that once came, but it’s seasonal,” Musa said. “It could reach 20 years ago now (and) before it comes again.”
Jibril Muregi, chairman of the Mokwa Local Government Area, told local news website Premium Times that the construction of the flood control work has been delayed for a long time.
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“This critical infrastructure is essential to mitigate future flood risks and protecting lives and property,” he said.
In September, heavy rains and dam collapse in the northeastern city of Maiduguri, killed at least 30 people, displaced millions, and caused serious floods that exacerbated the humanitarian crisis caused by the Boko Haram rebellion.