Some parts of Anambra State were taken over by flood on Wednesday due to a downpour that started in the areas around 2pm.
The Neni community in the Anaocha Local Government Area of the state was particularly affected as flood overran the roads and some houses in the area.
The flood rendered the roads in the community almost impassable, causing gridlock and discomfort for commuters as some of the residents of the area were seen scooping waters from their various homes as they blamed the lack of drainages in the area for the development.
A resident who identified himself as Uchenna Orji, said, “This is the situation we have found ourselves in today. I was in the office when they called me that flood had entered my apartment, I rushed home to see that my electronics, including my laptops, foodstuff, and mattress had all been soaked.
“This is the first time we will be experiencing flooding in this area and it is a surprise to us.”
Vehicular movement was disrupted in places like Onitsha, the commercial nerve centre of the state, motorists and commuters encountered severe gridlock on the Onitsha-Owerri Road as a result of the downpour which made movement difficult.
The resultant gridlock on the ever-busy road stretched from the Upper Iweka to the Enamel area of the road. The gridlock was worsened by naval ratings who mounted a checkpoint at Enamel and were using it to extort motorists plying the road.
The naval ratings were seen collecting various sums of money ranging from N100 from tricycle operators, N200 from shuttle bus drivers, N500 and N1,000 from lorry drivers, at the checkpoints, even as they totally blocked one lane of the road, thereby leaving only a small portion for motorists to make use of.
The naval ratings were also seen flogging motorists who refused to part with the amount demanded and also those who had driven against their instruction.
As of the time of filing this report, some motorists were seen carrying out some punishments meted to them by the naval ratings for not complying with their various directives.
The activities of the naval ratings at the Enamel bus stop caused a standstill on both lanes of the Onitsha-Owerri road, especially from the Ogboazun/Enamel/Amanator axis as people were seen trekking on one side of the lane.
A road user, who gave her name as Ifeoma Okeke said, “This Onitsha-Owerri Road is a critical road for us in the South-East and naval officers have continued to make life unbearable for motorists on the road.
“Despite the gridlock they have caused with their checkpoint, we also suffer from extortion. Look at the way they have blocked more than half of the two-lane road in the name of the checkpoint and are using it to extort us.”
However, in Awka, vehicles were seen moving at a slow pace at Awka-Enugu Expressway, some residents, told PUNCH Online that the blocked drainages in the area remained the major reason for the flooding.