Rainstorm destroys 180 structures in Musawa, Katsina

The Chairman of the Musawa council transition committee described the event as the “will of God”.

A three-hour rainstorm on Monday night destroyed more than 180 structures including residential homes, schools and hospitals in Musawa, headquarters of Musawa Local Government Area of Katsina State.

The Monday night disaster was the second in about two weeks following a similar occurrence on May 29 that destroyed 50 structures in the town.

The Chairman of the council’s Transition Committee, Tanimu Kira, told journalists after inspecting the affected areas on Wednesday that a committee had been constituted to verify the extent of the damage, adding that a relief package would be distributed to the victims.

He said that the council had provided the victims with temporary accommodation pending intervention by the state and federal governments. He also said that the council had distributed 100 bags of cement on June 11 to the victims of the May 29 incident, noting that the gesture was an interim measure to cushion the hardship faced by the people.

He described the incident as the will of God, and cautioned people against indiscriminate refuse disposal and blocking of waterways.

Mr. Kira said such acts were responsible for environmental pollution, and stressed the need for collective effort to protect the environment. He also advised the residents to refrain from indiscriminate felling of trees, but rather to cultivate the habit of planting trees to replace lost ones to check desert encroachment.