Commuters along the Akure-Ore highway were left stranded for several hours after heavy rainfall led to severe flooding in Ondo town, Ondo West Local Government Area. The downpour resulted in flooding in various parts of the town, trapping passengers inside their vehicles.
Unconfirmed reports suggested that one person may have been swept away by the floodwaters. However, the Ondo State Police spokesperson, SP Funmilayo Odunlami-Omisanya, stated that no official report of any casualties had been received at the time of filing this report.
Several areas, including the Oke-Odunwo bridge and Itanla community, were heavily affected by the flood, submerging homes and infrastructure. Among the commuters who narrowly escaped the flood was Babajide Akin-Thomas, a former Alliance for Democracy candidate. He shared his experience on social media, writing, “On my way from Abuja today, about to enter my hometown, Ondo City, see rain, see flood. Thank God we quickly turned back and drove to a hill. We are safe, myself and my P.A. Some other people and their vehicles are stuck.”
Hon. Basiru Oluwole, Vice Chairman of Agriculture and Natural Resources for Ondo West Local Government, attributed the flooding to blocked drainages caused by improper refuse disposal and the construction of houses on waterways. He noted that nearly all areas in Ondo West were affected but emphasized that the impact could have been far worse if the state government had not previously deployed an excavator to clear the drains.
Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, in a statement through his Chief Press Secretary, Ebenezer Adeniran, ordered the evacuation of affected areas and the rapid deployment of emergency response teams to prevent further damage. The governor, who sympathized with the Osemawe of Ondo and the people of the kingdom, noted that measures had been put in place to avert future flooding as predicted by NIMET. He confirmed that amphibious excavators were already working in critical erosion-prone areas in Ondo town.
