Photo Essay (I): No Way Home For Locals Uprooted By Disastrous Maiduguri Floods
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Tears, sorrow, destruction and displacement hit thousands of people following the disastrous flooding that nearly swallowed towns and villages of Maiduguri and the Jere local government areas of Borno State, North East Nigeria. The flood swept through communities and left disturbing trails of ruins in the affected areas.
It sparked intense debate over its causes, and HumAngle found through satellite data and an analysis of budgetary allocations that the breakdown of the Alau Dam was due to negligence and lack of accountability. Alau Dam, a critical infrastructure designed to regulate water flow and provide irrigation and drinking water, overflowed following heavy rainfall, resulting in unprecedented flooding, the worst crisis of its kind in 30 years.
The flood has displaced over 400,000 people, including those affected by the prolonged Boko Haram insurgency. HumAngle’s on-site reporting has documented how women, children, and elderly people are the most affected by this crisis. The flooding submerged towns and villages on Sept. 10, but some families are already picking up the ruins to rebuild their homes.
The state government set up temporary makeshift camps to accommodate victims of the flood, yet several families could not make it to the camp for unclear reasons. Some other families passed the nights on sprawling streets and host communities.
Families build shelters under vehicles on streets.
A mother prepares dan wake (food made of either beans or grains flour) while her children take a nap in the tent constructed along Maiduguri – Dikwa road.
An unaccompanied child prepares hot water using a rubber item washed by floodwaters.
Displaced Fanna dries up the remaining beans they retrieved from their flooded homes. It was the only food item they could retrieve six days after the flood started receding in their areas in the Kwanan Yobe community.
Groundnuts are prepared for sale while a mother prepares food for the family.
Even in times of displacement, mothers continue to teach their daughters how to cook.
Families are desperate because they are running out of food supplies. As the days continue to unfold uncertainties, they cling to hope. They are left to fend for themselves since they do not live in designated makeshift shelters, which may have enabled them access to government support.
Bakura’s family sells cassava flour and palm oil to families taking refuge on the streets. He travels on foot to get supplies because of a hike in transport fares. Several victims of the flood cannot afford good food.
Families and friends visit their relatives displaced by the flood. Many bring glad tidings like cash, food supplies, and emotional support to those affected.
Interactions take place between flood victims.
Families dry up catfish caught by their children in floodwaters, and will use it to add protein value to their inadequate daily meals.
Women living side by side under one tent.
It is an empty cooking pot for many because there is nothing to cook.
Charcoal is commonly used as a source of fire to prepare food.
For others whose homes were entirely destroyed by the flood, the cost of rebuilding is a source of worry for them, given how expensive everything has become. They wish for good and learn to live with hope, an expensive virtue they must adopt.
Bachelors too have their tent.
Typical tent set up.
Some tents are very short.
Some families bear the rainfall because they don’t have the materials to build a good tent; they use their clothing and bedsheets to construct their tent.
Disastrous flooding in Maiduguri and the Jere local government areas of Borno State, North East Nigeria, has caused immense destruction and displaced over 400,000 people. The flooding was triggered by the breakdown of the Alau Dam following heavy rainfall, which was attributed to negligence and lack of accountability regarding the dam’s maintenance.
The affected regions have seen significant displacement, with many victims, including women, children, and the elderly, struggling to find shelter and food. Temporary camps set up by the state government have not accommodated all victims, leading some families to live on the streets. Despite the dire circumstances, communities are attempting to rebuild, with families creating makeshift shelters and finding ways to dry and preserve what little food they can salvage.
