Cemeteries in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State and Bomadi Local Government Area of Delta have are bursting due to ravaging flood causing corpses to float on water
Several communities in Bomadi, Patani and Burutu local government areas of Delta State were overrun by the flood, sacking indigenes who went to sleep on Bomadi Bridge over night.
Vanguard reported yesterday that this year’s flood is perhaps the worst in Nigeria’s history, with over 603 dead, two million displaced and hundreds of hectares of farmlands destroyed.
The situation has made residents of these communities to raise the alarm on Monday while calling on the state government to intervene immediately.
A resident, Mr Emmanuel Oden, said cemeteries revealing their contents due to flood had become an annual occurrence, and urged the cemetery be relocated.
Oden said corpses were often buried in shallow graves of about 3 feet, rather than the recommended six feet prescribed by law.
Another resident Mr Ebi Owoupele, has urged the Bayelsa State Government to immediately come to aide of the people and relocate the cemetery.
Due to the situation, the morgue at Bomadi General Hospital and Olodiama had been submerged, also with floating corpses as a result.
The state Commissioner for Environment and chairman of Bayelsa Flood Committee, Mr. Iselema Gbaranbiri, said three floating corpses were recovered and reburied with the environment properly fumigated.
His words, “the floating of corpses were actually reported. First, as commissioner for the environment, I got the report of a floating corpse and directed my head of health and sanitation to get the corpse reburied. Later two more corpses were recovered and reburied and the environment was properly fumigated.”
