The Minister of Secondary Education and elite of Fako Division in the South West Region, Prof. Pauline Nalova Lyonga, has blamed residents for contributing to the deadly effects of recent floods and landslides in the coastal town of Limbe.
Three members of the same family, including a pregnant woman, were killed when their building collapsed in Mbende Quarter, Mokeba Farms, in the Limbe I Council area, in the early hours of Wednesday, August 5, following hours of torrential rainfall that triggered severe flooding and landslides, according to the Limbe City Council.
“We [the population] ourselves are guilty of what has happened here,” Minister Nalova said on Equinoxe Television after visiting the affected area on Sunday, August 9. “Let us know that when the authorities map out a land that this is a risk zone, let us respect that.”
Similarly, Limbe City Mayor Dr Paul Efome Ngale said the impact of the floods and landslides might have been less severe if residents had complied with regulations governing construction in risk-prone areas.
“The Limbe City Council uses this [sad] occasion to once again sensitise the population to avoid living in areas that have been mapped out as risk zones such as hillsides, riverbanks and flood-prone areas,” the mayor said in a press release announcing the incident.
He also urged residents of the seaside city to regularly consult meteorological forecasts to remain informed about changing weather conditions.
Dr Efome Ngale pledged that the Limbe City Council would continue its flood-mitigation efforts while “awaiting the support of the state for a sustainable solution”.
Nalova offers FCFA 7 million to victims
During her visit to Limbe, Minister Nalova Lyonga toured areas devastated by the floods and visited victims, many of whom were rendered homeless.
She also visited and condoled with Meh James Duh, the father of the three deceased family members, who was rescued from the mudslide and rushed to hospital.
Before leaving Limbe, Nalova donated FCFA 7 million to support victims of the floods and landslides, according to media reports, including the English-language daily The Guardian Post.
Meanwhile, Fako Senior Divisional Officer (SDO) Viang Mekala has declared Mokeba Farms and the area behind Deeper Life Church in Mbende, Limbe, risk zones and ordered residents to relocate.
In Prefectoral Order No. 352/PO/G.37/C90/1AP of Thursday, August 6, the SDO said the recent landslide had rendered the areas unsafe for human habitation.
In a separate press release, the Limbe City Council said it would immediately begin identifying and marking all affected and endangered houses in the neighbourhoods, in compliance with the prefectural order.
“This measure is necessary to protect lives and property from further landslides, especially as heavy rainfall may continue,” the Limbe City Mayor said in the release dated Thursday, August 7.
He urged residents to “cooperate fully” with the Council’s technical teams carrying out the identification and marking exercise.
