Ga North communities devastated as heavy rains flood homes, destroy belongings

Families displaced as floodwaters destroy homes and property

Residents of Vicolis and Amamorley Estates in Ga North Municipality are reeling from the impact of severe flooding triggered by heavy rains on Thursday night. The torrential downpour inundated numerous homes, destroyed personal belongings and forced families to abandon their rooms. When visited on Friday morning, affected residents were still struggling to salvage what remained of their possessions after spending a harrowing night battling rising floodwaters.

Many residents spent the entire night scooping water from their rooms, whilst others sought refuge in nearby multi-storey buildings. One resident, Ahmed, said he was forced to pack his few salvaged items into jute bags and arrange transportation as his room had become uninhabitable. Apostle Isaac, who lost his home and church to the floods, reported that his children could not attend school and that valuable church equipment including speakers and keyboards were destroyed. He described the incident as the worst flooding he had witnessed in his 10 years living in the area.

Poor drainage infrastructure blamed for disaster

Residents and community leaders have pointed to the deteriorating condition of the Insakina drain as the primary cause of the flooding. According to Apostle Isaac, the drainage system is frequently choked with refuse dumped from other communities, which obstructs water flow and causes overflow during heavy rains. Residents had to manually enter the drain on Friday morning to remove accumulated rubbish to allow floodwaters to recede.

Former People's National Convention assembly member aspirant Aikins Ayariga criticised years of broken promises, noting that Members of Parliament and other officials have repeatedly visited the community to inspect the drainage system and take measurements, but no substantial work has followed. He alleged that politics and inadequate funding have contributed to delays in addressing the problem.

Calls for urgent government intervention

Community members are urgently appealing to the government, Ga North Municipal Assembly and the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) to dredge and reconstruct the drainage network before another heavy downpour causes further destruction. Residents fear the flooding will become a recurring problem without permanent drainage solutions, and stress that they have endured this challenge for far too long.