Maiduguri flooded as Alau dam breaks down

Residents of Maiduguri in Borno are on high alert as flood has submerged many homes following the alleged breakdown of Alau Dam that has been filled to capacity for the past one week.

A statement in the early hours of Tuesday by Prof. Usman Tar, the Commissioner for Information and Internal Security, titled "Flooding Alert for River Bank Residents ", called for immediate evacuation.

He said, "Due to the unusually high volume of water this year, we urge all the residents living along the river bank to take immediate action to protect themselves and their properties.

"The Alau Dam water has broken down another channel that is currently destroying farms and the water is heading toward the river bank."

Tar also urged the residents of the affected areas to follow evacuation routes to ensure safe passage.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the last time the dam had such a problem was in 1994, resulting in unprecedented flooding in Maiduguri when almost half of the town was flooded.