Lagos State Commissioner for the Environment, Mr. Tunji Bello, has warned residents against carrying out commercial activities near canals and drainage channels.
He also urged those whose shops and stalls obstruct the drains to remove them, warning that as from this week the ministry would begin to enforce demolition of obstructive structures.
He urged Lagosians to report all cases of drainage blockages, dumping of waste into canals and other unauthorised places to resident engineers/drainage maintenance officers whose phone numbers had been published in newspapers.
Bello stated these during an inspection tour of on-going drainage projects in the state.
The drainage projects inspected included Elere drains in Agege running through Odejobi, Agunbiade/Alfa Nla which is expected to deflood Iju road, Elere Street, Alfa Nla Road, Agunbiade road, Odejobi street and old Abeokuta motorway.
Others were Awori-Moricas drain, Adealu and Papa Ashafa expected to take care of Moricas, Awori, Adenle, Alfa Nla, Ipaja streets, Roche, Ifelodun streets, Adealu and Papa Ashafa and environs.
He also visited drainage construction sites going on in GRA Ikeja, saying the collector drains in the area including Oduduwa street drain, Fanikayode/Sobo Arobiodu drain, Oduduwa outfall would deflood Oduduwa, Sobo Arobiodu, Fanikayode streets, Oduduwa Cresent and environs.
He noted that the drainage construction around GRA was to harmonise all collector drains around the area to effectively combat flood.
The commissioner said the effort to contain flood was the responsibility of all and urged Lagosians to collaborate with the government by cleaning the drainages in their frontages.
He encouraged people to verify the drainage level of their area and obtain invert level of the major roads before constructing their buildings to ensure that houses were not submerged.
He warned, "Those who build their houses below the drainage level will experience perennial flooding of such houses.
"Let me implore Lagosians to understand that what Lagos at times experiences is flash flood due to large volume of persistent rainfall. Flash flood would disappear shortly after it rains as opposed to real flood which would last for days."
The Punch