Two children die in building collapse

Two children in north-western Nigeria have died after the building they were in collapsed, adding to the dozens who have lost their lives during weeks of severe flooding, the country’s disaster agency said.

The National Emergency Management Agency (Nema) reported that the children died in Katsina, one of the seven north-western states hit particularly hard by flooding.

A third child was left with injuries following the building collapse, Nema said.

On Thursday, the agency said at least 179 people across Nigeria have died as a result of the floods, while tens of thousands have been forced from their homes.

In a statement, the office of Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu said he had received “the news of the devastation wreaked by floods on communities and farmlands across the country with profound grief”.

The president emphasised the need to address “environmental concerns” and “build a more climate resilient and adaptive society”, the statement added.

Around 107,000 hectares of farmland have been washed away – a statistic that is causing concern as Nigerians are already struggling under steep increases in food costs.

The country is facing its worst economic crisis in a generation thanks to issues such as double-digit inflation and foreign currency shortages.

Nema and the UN’s refugee agency noted that several of those displaced by the flooding had already fled their homes in the north-west due to repeated attacks by militants.

The UN’s refugee agency said the floods were a “devastating” event that has wrought “death and destruction”.

In 2022, Nigeria experienced its worst flooding in more than a decade, which killed more than 600 people and displaced around 1.3 million.

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