The Hadejia-Jama’are River Basin Development Authority has assured that the Tiga and Challawa dams in Kano state do not carry the risk of flooding like the Alau Dam in Borno state.
According to a BBC Hausa report, the authority said it has sent a team of experts to assess the conditions of the two dams, following concerns that arose from the Alau dam overflow in Borno.
The Managing Director of the Authority, Ma’amun Da’u Aliyu said the decision to send experts to assess the two dams stemmed from widespread fears of flooding by residents.
“The capacity of the Tiga dam is 15 times more than the Alau Dam. That’s why we took engineers from our headquarters and joined those at Tiga dam to carry out the assessment.
“And we have been able to conclude that the Tiga dam is safe and does not carry any threat of floods,” he said.
Mr Aliyu explained that both Tiga and Challawa dams are receiving diligent maintenance in order to ensure their safety, adding that it is usually the lack of maintenance that causes dams to overflow and cause flooding.
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“A dam as large as these ones are not dredged. The main way to maintain them is to release the water periodically for dry-season farming or to return to the rivers along with all the dirt that accumulates in them,” he said.
Mr Aliyu said there are special equipment that shows the activities of the dams each day, including the inflow and outflow of water from them, adding that the records are being kept.
“As it is, we strongly believe that there is no threat of flooding from Tiga and Challawa dams by God’s grace,” he said.
Recall that the Alau Dam in Konduga local government area of Borno state overflooded last week following continuous heavy rainfall, which led a massive floods that killed more than 30 people and displace a million more in Maiduguri.
Governor Babagana Umara Zulum said it was too early to asses the extent of the damage done by the floods, which have affect homes, farmlands, hospitals and schools.
Humanitarian aid workers in Maiduguri are still searching for missing persons just as displaced persons have been resettled in camps.
