 All right, so floods are some of the most destructive natural disaster people must endure, often lasting longer and impacting larger areas. Flood tend to be much more costly than other events, both in financial terms and lost of life. Flooding destroys homes and properties, cripples transportation and leaves a host of potential diseases in its wake. Now, rapidly moving flood water also erode banks and shorelines, then deposit huge amounts of debris onto surrounding areas. The cleaner process and cost after a flood are typically as much, if not more, than the cost of the physical damage alone. The economic fallout from even a minor flood of the last several years. Flooding is natural for all bodies of water, however, modern expansion alters the landscape and enroaches or encroaches on areas that wear once natural watersheds. This along with the fact that modern construction does not absorb runoffs results in more frequent and more costly flooding while levees and modern engineering help reduce effect of flooding. There is no way to entirely prevent floods. So whilst there are things we cannot control, we however have full control how we respond when there is a flooding crisis and that is what we are trying to address tonight. Now, please, let's hear what you have to say. Remember, you can join the conversation, send us an SMS or WhatsApp to 081 803-4663. You can also trade at us at Weishaw Afqa on the hashtag Weishaw. All right, so this conversation is very important to have because oftentimes it's just like driving on the road, right? And you see people maybe taking a walk or a jog and they are jogging, backing and oncoming traffic, right? Every time I see it, I quite kind of cringe because the security or the safe thing to do, right? If you want to really be security conscious, right? The safe thing to do when you're on the highway or you're on the road, even on the street, even in your estate is you're supposed to walk on the other side of the road so you face an oncoming vehicle. So if there's anything that would happen, you would immediately see it and probably maybe avoid it because somebody had his leg broken because of that because he was taking an early morning walk at 6 a.m. and his bus driver lost control and that was how the man lost his legs. So when I see things like that, I just feel like there's not enough sensitization that is going on with this. And so when I saw that video, right, it just hit me that how on earth, people have said this thing time and time again, that when you see water, right, that is not when you are thinking that, oh no, I can't, I can't, you know, because again, this water was moving with really high tidal waves, right? So how would you in your right senses go into the water? Then again, I now thought how many people are in their right senses and how many people even understand, you know, these things. And that's why we're having this conversation because there's a part of the flooding itself. There's a part of the government and there's a part of us as citizens. They will send you warnings. They will tell you something is happening. People will still stay in their homes, believing that it's not going to happen to them. And this is not unique to Africa because even abroad, when you have all the hurricanes and all of that, even when they do all the warnings and you still see people stay there, then they will not be waiting for people to come and rescue them. But let me hear your thoughts. I mean, when you saw that video, what came to your mind with you? And I'll come to the end, Jim. So, I mean, you hit the nail on the head, right? But sometimes context is good because let's be clear that flooding is a part of our lives. What we are now discussing is the extent of the flooding because when rain falls, I mean, if we just even take Lagos, take the island where we are, when rain falls, you battle a couple of things. You battle groundwater that's coming rising up from the ground because this is sand field reclaimed land. You battle the bad roads, so there are potholes and gullies where water sits. You battle a lack of drainage. All of this on a small patch of land surrounded by water on one side. In fact, water on both sides, the ocean on one side, the inlet on the other side. So, in truth, what we're talking about when we look at a video like this is the extent of the flooding. Because if we told Nigeria today that when the floods don't go anywhere, it's like throughout rainy season we'll just be at home. So, to a certain extent, we've already been cultivated by our environment to venture into the water. It's not like when you look at a broad where there's drainage, there's all of this. So, it is atypical for there to be a mass of or a pool of water on a road where we walk through. There are certain parts of Lekina when it rains. People are rolling their trousers up to their knees, taking off their shoes, and they're wading through this water. Then you tell that same person that when you see this water, no, just go the other direction. They can't be like, well, this is my life every day. So, that's the first problem where contextually it's the norm. Now, what we're talking about is how we define or differentiate this kind of situation where there is a tide and quite a rapid tide because we're used to it. So, there's a gap in that part of the knowledge. This video is a perfect example. It was a needless occurrence because what happened is there's a group of people, they're all watching it. So, he goes into the water and the bit at the entrance is not part of the tide per se. The tide is flowing across from him and he thinks, I can go past it. And guess what? He was just a few inches away to this. So, I can go through it and the passengers jump off as they start to feel that it's unstable and he keeps going. And like you said, he almost made it. But what was more critical for me and the point, the bit of the video that adds to this point that we're making now is when it first started, it was almost like hell in him. So, it was so easy for even the people that got off the bike to pull the bike and say, August stop or the people who were there to say, don't do it. But they were yelling like, ah, let's see what will happen. Let's see what will happen. Then it's a progression of, hey, ha, ha. Then they start shouting, right? Because he's now caught up in the tide and it's, ah, he's gone. He's gone. He's gone. He's gone. He's gone. Then they see his head. Oh, thank you God. Thank you God. Thank you God. And next, the head is gone again. The head is gone again. So, you've gone through this progression where you see this is the manifestation of the lack of the awareness of the difference between the day to day and how quickly a small volume of water, because anybody looking at this, in fact, where he first of all got picked up by the tide, it didn't appear to be as deep as when he then started to flow. So, that's the thing with water. You can't tell how deep it is until you're actually in it. And by then it's too late because when it's flowing, it takes you. So, even if you were able to swim, right, you're not swimming against the tide, you are going with it. There's all sorts of things. Like we said, there could be live wires in there. So, the challenge is real in that when you now talk about this awareness, the awareness is just not stay away from floods, but it's the sensitization of the difference as to where the danger is because this is part of our daily lives. I get you. I get you. I mean, I remember when there was a particular time when we had serious issues in the home in Chiangutedo, where the water would get up to my my bonnet level, but because that water is still, right, I mean, people, you will still see the Kada riders, you see everybody still go through that water. So, I believe that that was the mindset he had, not putting in consideration that there was a flow somewhere at midpoint, you know, and again, you know, with water, the bikes become lighter. So, he felt maybe he could really, really pull this bike, you know, and yes, now, you know, weight is when you're underwater, no matter how maybe you're lighter. Yes, you know, so you're lighter underwater. So, I am very certain that he kept on thinking to himself that he does it every day. So, you know, because the passengers got off. So, technically, the place you were going to, the people you were carrying have come down. So, why didn't you turn back? Why didn't you turn back? Well, let me hear your thoughts. Well, when you saw this, basically, you guys have said it all. When I saw this, I was actually quite surprised because this is something that happens every day. Most people do this, like Uti rightfully said. There are lots of places even on the island where you just, a little bit of rain, not even the normal eight days, one week rain or seven days rain. And the whole place is flooded. And the whole place is flooded. Why? Because we have bad drainage, we have bad waste, you know, management systems and all that. So, all these things help to contribute to the current situation. Now, one of the things that people need to sensitize themselves about information that people need to figure out is what to actually do when these things happen. Like a simple case like this, even a simple home case, I've seen stories of people who drowned in their own home just because they were either trying to save lives on property, you know, instead of getting themselves to safety. And then the water came and overtook the whole thing and everybody perished. So, there are, there has to be steps to take. And I would say it's not just the government to sensitize people. We should actually get information. If you live in an area where you know it's flooded, you should actually ask yourself, okay, if this thing should affect me, what should I do? What are some of the things I can do, apart from calling people? Because by the time you're calling people, it's already too late. No one can come to your rescue. You can see that happening in different states where no one can even come to your rescue because either they have to, the only way to get to you is through a canoe or that. And that would not be able to carry equipment needed to actually help people out. But you know, going back to this video, another thing I noticed is that, like Uti said, there were a lot of people hailing and everything, there are a lot of onlookers in situations in Nigeria. And it's appalling to a very, very frightening extent. We've seen people get robbed. We've seen people in need of just minor help. Maybe their tire is bad and everything. And we just drive on like no problem. I feel like if this guy perished, it's on a lot of people's heads because if you find yourself in such a situation, there should be a level of help you can be willing to give. A lot of people are there because they know that these things will happen. They know that this accident, the road is already blocked, so they know that this accident will happen. What happens to even somebody just having a rope, a stick? That guy went all the way downriver. I don't know how that body of water goes, but that guy went all the way downriver. And there were a lot of people. Nobody could go in to help. I'm not saying going into the water. I'm just saying that even as individuals, there are certain things we can do in terms of even trying to help, rather than just being the first to bring out your phone to record, somebody get washed away. Okay, I hear you. Let me put it in a bit of statistics because now the minister just saw a report that the minister for disaster, what's her name again? Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development. Her name is Sadia Farouk. She has given us a figure. So she said that as of yesterday, on the fourth, there has been over 3,219,780 persons affected by this flood in 2022, that there are about 1.4 million 27,370 persons that have been internally displaced, and approximately 2,776 persons have been injured, and approximately 612 people have been killed. 181,600 houses have been partially damaged, while 123,807,000 houses have been totally damaged. This is the current report because again, finally, 176,852 hectares of farmland have been partially damaged, while 392,399 hectares of farmland have been totally damaged. Because most times we complain that we do not get data, we don't get figures to work with, I'm happy that these figures have come out, but I want us to go back to the conversation. The reason I'm stating this out is that beyond just giving us data and all of that, do we think that the government is doing enough to do what we are doing on this table now today, which is helping people understand how to deal and better manage these things. Because I mean, flooding is going on, and I'm not seeing like a lot of government people coming out, sensitizing people, sending out videos, sending out audio, sending out what's called press releases and all of that. Because I know that there's a disaster, something that they are doing, I think some funding that they are doing. If that is related to this, that means it defeats the purpose, because again, there are some deaths that I feel that can be prevented, right? And I'm not seeing the government doing it, but there's one government that has done something. And when we come back from the break, we're going to show that video, because I believe Lagos State government did something, many, we had one, I mean, UTI helped me to fish out that video. So it's important that at this time, we start to continuously put that in the consciousness of the minds of people, so that they know that this is how you should relate when it comes to flooding. We'll take that video once we come back from the break, stay with us over right back. It doesn't look that deep. So you decide to drive through it. Bad decision. And it may be. So, so thank you. If you just tuned in to our ladies night out and we're discussing how citizens can better respond to floodings, right? And now please let's hear what you have to say. Remember, you can join the conversations and there's an SMS or WhatsApp to do it. 1-803-4663. You can also see that it's at Weissha, Africa one, with the hashtag Weissha. Now our phone line is now open. The number to call is 070-2500-7749. That's the number to call 070-2500-7749. Now I want the citizens, I mean, if you can call in, I want to hear what you have to say about the government's response, you know, to, you know, flooding situations. And do you think they're sensitizing the people enough? And again, I want to hear what you think people can begin to do to ourselves. Because I like what Andy had talked about on Lucas, right? It's something we do all the time. Something is happening. You see somebody dying. There's just been an accident. And the next thing, people are bringing out phones. I get the part of wanting to document things, you know, so that probably you will be able to say, okay, these were the events that happened. But they're still also that part. Because I believe that if at the initial stage of that initial video that we watched, that the guy was entering with a eyeball, shouting, don't go, don't go, don't go. You think he would have still gone. But he was carrying. No, we see he would have still gone. Because the point at which if he was going to stop, and I want to refer to this last video that you just played, at the very beginning of the video, right, it is just validating what we just talked about. The puddle looks like what we drive through every day. It was just static. You go in, you come out. But if you notice the angle then changed. And they showed it from above. And then there was a tide and then the car turned and you could see it flowing down. So that is where the consciousness is. Because in this video where the guy had the bike, he literally won when the passengers stopped, when the passengers got off, he could have stopped. When the tide first of all actually picked him up, the first time he could have let go of the bike. Yes, right. And then tried to save himself. So there are multiple factors here that impact this, where we talk about where the responsibility lies. Now, I hear you in that there's a responsibility for the government. Where for me that responsibility lies is one, given that we understand the, will I say the geography and the topography of where we are in certain parts of Nigeria, where we see the flooding in Kogi today with all the conversations around dams and, you know, the confluence of the rivers. And then where we are in a place like Lagos, the island, there's water everywhere. So when you look at the topography now, it's largely flat because you are feeling sand filling and you're building. So there is nothing to actually because what do we do? There's vegetation. You plant trees to, you know, soak up the water, to slow down the flow of the water. You're supposed to have like slopes and things. That's a lot of these things because we ask ourselves the same questions. There's water on your front. There's water on your back. Is it that when we were doing the town planning and building and putting the plants together, there wasn't a collective thought to drainage as to how to drain the water everywhere. But of course, we know that's not the case because you develop your 600 square meters, you come next door, develop your 600 square meters. There's a stretch of road, if you sort of live in my neighborhood basically, where the developer that built this stretch did the paving stones, the interlocking stones and finished it and it was flat. Now the next house that came, of course, they raised it. So automatically they've created a flashpoint for water to pool. We're even still managing that. Then the developer that comes and builds the house at that joint place now proceeds to raise their and then they want to put drainage because they've raised the house up so high, of course cars now need to drive. So they then created gutters. So they broke the oil in place where there's a problem to put gutters. So there's a plethora of problems where the government has a responsibility, first in ensuring that the town planning deals more issues. You must follow the farm plan plan, the water, the drainage, not gutter. They say, do you have a room for water to sit in or actually building a runoff where the water has somewhere to go? Let me take a call, our first caller for the evening. Thank you, Loma, you're alive. Good evening. Thank you for calling. Yeah, see, I was just telling you on that video. It faddles my heart, it's unfortunate. But sometimes we are the aspect of our problem because this guy is the water that is the flood that is washing with salt springs. What you're supposed to do is to go around that well out there that you go, but because he doesn't want to let go the out there and that is why they now ended up being shoved away by the flood. So I want to use this opportunity to tell people, once it starts raining, because of the climatic change, please don't drive like me in Omaia here. Once it starts raining, I will not drive again. I will park once I and make sure that wherever that I want to park you, even if it is flooded, the flood must come down before I pass through it. Because if you go in because of the spring of your flood, before you know it, you are gone. So people didn't make any government. I will say that lack of planning on the part of government cannot be an emergency on the part of cities. The top planners need to work on and the thing that is supposed to be done at the initial stage in order to stop this flooding should be done anyway, not people losing their lives. Thank you very much. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. Go ahead. So I was just going to say that so you've got that part of the government rights and like what Loma was saying is you the people, what is also the responsibility because this is what we are talking about. This is just sadly poor decision making on the part of the Ocarina rider. But like I said, he probably has passed through water like that all the time. So he just thought this is like every other because why didn't he stop? Why didn't he turn around? But now you've taken all these issues because like Loma was saying at the end there, town planning, which is what I was saying. But then we are even late now because in like in like where do you want to start sloping? Where do you want to like we are all even the little sloping that people say, okay, let me try and raise mine. You are creating a problem for somebody because it is not a it wasn't planned that way. So today, how do we start to fix these problems? You that have drains. You know, you know how it is here. Once the rain starts to fall, they come and dig the drains, the gutters and they leave it on the side of the road to dry then it eventually washes back into the gutters. So from that responsibility point of view, what are we supposed to do as people? Because in a lot of the time, I think the point for me or the crux that we want people to take away is look, if you are waiting for the government, you are in a long time because the government is dealing with the security, is dealing with FX issue, is dealing with petrol issue. See, you and your house and protecting yourself from flood to help you just help yourself. Right? That's what it needs to be and that's why the topic is so important. Absolutely. Let me take Isaac from Abiyakuta, I believe. You're alive. Good evening. Hi, good evening Isaac. Yeah, it's a very vast situation we find ourselves in the country. You know, we generally lack management structure. You know, we wait for accidents to happen before we start running around. When you look at that vision of the world, besides the government challenges, we as a people, we also need to be realistic. The people that were standing there on both sides knew that that road was very bad. The Okada rider obviously was coming from somewhere else and have no clue how bad the situation was. In the western world, they would have stopped him before he would enter. But you see, we are, we are very, we come to a place where things are so messed up and we get excited when we see things happen, even if they are bad things. You know, so we, the people need to be sensitized to love one another and to protect one another. Because if you watch the video, you will find that that guy was not protected. Nobody can give what they don't have. It's as much as you know, you will display. Thank you. But then the government needs to put a lot into preparation for natural disasters. Thank you very much. You guys are doing a great job. Thank you so much, Isaac. You know, I mean, I'll come to you, NJ. Places in the world I've seen people actually, I mean, they would have been like a big codon, right? Don't go to this area because that's where Isaac is. Because I've seen Nigerians do it. Like if you're driving on the highway, you know, we go to Oshun city most times to go see our kids, you know, or drop them in school. There are really bad spots. So even the people that put it as a point of duty to tell you, Madam, you can't go further down this road. You have to go through this way. They help, right? But I just feel like, you know, these are not responsibilities of people. So the government, I feel that where the government would have come in is identify these hot beds, right? These hot spots and position people. The way you have your, and you see your emergency response people, it's not only when there's a building collapse or when there's a fire incident or something. Emergency also does not mean that the incident must have happened. It is also preventing those incidences because we've seen tankers fall and they go out and quickly spray foam on it for me water so that it doesn't spark up a fire. So these are the situations that we should also have our emergency response team, right? They would have been on ground there, ensuring that nobody crosses that path. Until maybe that water has really, really gone down, then they leave. These are the kinds of things that tells me that a government is proactive, right? If a government would sit down and say, you know what, these are hot spots for flooding and, you know, there would always be a wave water. I mean, when the arequo water is released, you know, they will state one, you know that the long bridge, you would see the long bridge that before you see the water, you will see that it will be at the level of that bridge. It means that the people that built that bridge, they were not stupid. They knew the exact water level of that they said before they built it because when there's no water issue, you would think, why is this bridge, the bridge is useless because there's no water. But when that water happens, when they, when they release the, you will see the water is at that level of the bridge, like a part with the bridge. So do you understand my point? If we have government that will say, you know what, ahead of all of these things, there are hot spots where this flooding happened and they positioned their men there, maybe, you know, that will also prevent unnecessary death. I'm not talking about properties will be lost, things will be lost, but the loss of life is really what really, really disturbs me, some of these things. But let me hear your thoughts, NJ. You guys have said it all. You know, there's a place for government in all this, there's a responsibility for government. Yes, whether it's from the drainage angle, managing waste, managing what happens with the gutters and even town planning, all the way there. And then there's the human angle where we also have to even try to even be more proactive in what we're doing. Whether it's when you want from, starting from when you actually want to build, actually pay attention to some of these things, because I've been to some places where no, it's very sloppy. Then someone, some rich guy goes all the way to the top and builds, you know, raises the floor level and builds his house, which means that when there's a flood, he has already created a problem for every other person. Let me take Rotimi, I think from Agege, I believe. Meduguri, oh okay, Rotimi from Meduguri, you're live. Hello, good evening. Hi, good evening, sorry for keeping you. Yes, my name is Rotimi and I'm from Meduguri. Go ahead. Yes, I, watching that video, this evening, it's a very pathetic situation. Do you understand the point now? It's a very pathetic situation because we don't have an effective human sympathy and feeling. Now, the other guy was just driving in and everybody was just healing him and they were making a video of him. Nobody informed him that where he was going was quite dangerous, maybe he's not familiar with the time. Sorry Rotimi, I'm afraid we couldn't hear, maybe his ears were pressing the keys on because it was really interrupting. But Agege, we have a comment quickly. Yes, go ahead. Oh, okay, so we have good evening, good evening ladies. The Okada man is greedy, he's valued, he's valued his Okada more than his life. While the end result is disaster, a erosion of both the man and his Okada. However, the local government should have a place, it should have placed a no entry sign at the start point, which is just like what you said. So, can I just play the back? Of course, of course. So, I hear you and there's a lot of sensitization. So, when we come into the season, which is something like what that video, the animation world, the... So, I've seen circulars by the negativities, please hold your thoughts. Let me come to Henry then, I'll come back to you. Henry, you're live. Hello, good evening. Hi, good evening. Go ahead. Yeah, so this video is very, very, is a very sorry case, but every citizen is responsible for his safety too. I've had cases in which places like this happen, or things like this happen, and yes, on their day, when they're individuals, they'll be backing people and collecting money to ferry people across these dangerous spots. In my own interpretation of this video, it's not what's held up, I say. This man, unfortunately, knew where he was going. You can see across the bank, people are standing. It's probably ferrying people over there for money. If you see all around the video, there are people standing, the new world to that place is. But some guys take it upon themselves to collect money from people, to ferry people across these dangerous sites. Unfortunately, for him, he could not make that ship, Mr. Moran. So, I just see him as a random occurred man. I'm seeing him as someone, and if you look at this other side, you see people still standing. So, we have some people who want to cross to the other side and waiting for somebody, and a occurred man, or somebody can back, that can piggyback them across. So, it's unfortunate what happened. I thought he was safe, but later I'm going to listen to the video and tell that he couldn't hold on to him. But everybody's also responsible for their safety and make wise decisions. Then when we talk about flooding, it feels like the one that happened in Pakistan, a quarter of the whole country was submerged. There's no number of government and private persons, but there's no number of government officials that can be in all these hotspots. Sometimes these things overwhelm everybody, all the government, the community, and everything. Having good knowledge of where you are staying and where to pee. There are some places where it starts raining and starts leaving because once you stay in one place and the flood keeps rising, you don't know whether it's going to get to the roof or it's just going to be at your knee level. When I know those areas, I leave immediately. Once I see that everywhere is darkening, not what I'm trapped and then the flood water keeps rising and keeps rising and I'm trapped. So, government has a lot to do. They need to have equity drains. They need to sensitize the community and everybody. But we as individuals also need to know where we are staying, peculiarity of some neighborhoods. Thank you so much. I'll be careful. Thank you. Very valid point. Uti, go ahead quickly. So, I guess let me take the comment first. So, this is from Daniel, a regular fan. He says, how can Nigerians respond better to floods? In a nutshell, the government is responsible for all of this. When funds are released for projects, they do a half job. It's so sad that up till now we're still talking about flooding in Nigeria. The government don't even care about human lives and properties. They just do things as they like. This alone is very pathetic, disgraceful and embarrassing and then he's welcoming back. Thank you, Daniel. I like some of the points that we just raised because those are the things that we're talking about. There is the responsibility. For me, from the government side, I think it's the sensitization. What we tend to do is very reactive. These rains come every year. So, the rest of the year, what are the emergency people doing? So, yes, like we've seen in the last few weeks, they've released communicates around. If you live in this area, if you live in this area, move to high ground. People don't really have where they're going to move to. So, how do you help these people and educate them year round to say, you know what, as you start to get to the rainy season, here are the things that you need to do. Communities, to me, this looks a bit like a flash flood, right? So, in areas where we have assessed and we said, okay, this area is prone to flash flooding, guys, people that live in this area, what do we need to do? Every collective, if we don't form anything, we form association. Every street has their own. So, these engagements can happen so that people understand how they can protect themselves. Like you said, you may not be able to protect your property, but at least let's not lose life, right? So, people need to be empowered to say, what are the peculiarities of my environment? If you live in Owaru today, by the end of 3rd Milan Bridge, you'll know there's no doubt it will flood. What do you do? Do you have a family member you can go and stay with, a place you can go? So, we're not getting to rainy season or when this actually happens to react. There are plans in place. So, it's a continuous cycle. It's year-round. Every year, rainy season comes around. We will not have the, we have flooding to different extent every year, but we have to be better prepared, not just from the perspective of the government, because I really like the comment that he said, look, there are not enough people. We don't have enough doctors. We don't have enough police. It's now the emergencies. It just not happened. So, we all have to be responsible collectively. Absolutely. The phone line is buzzing. Sorry, we apologize. We can't take more calls, but I think we've had a fantastic conversation, and we all kind of agree that there's a role that we all have to play in protecting our lives. When things like this happen, property should not be the one that comes first. I remember what RDJ, God rest his soul, would always say. He said, what does not cost life can be replaced. Absolutely. So, it means that whatever it is that you're doing at every point in time, think life first. I mean, if it is your Okada, it could have been replaced. But now you have lost your life, you know, and it was a needless loss. But thank you so much, ladies. Thank you, Utti. Thank you, NJ. Now, before we go and show you followers across all our social media platforms at Wayshoe Africa, you can interact with us further. Drop a comment, and most importantly, follow our engagements on social media. Like, share, and invite your family and friends to watch and follow the conversation. Now, if you missed today's quote here, it is again, water is a weapon. As you can see, it can kill people. So, you have to be very careful when there is any issue of flooding around you. Do not take it lightly. It can't be a very serious thing. Now, we'll see you guys live at 8 p.m. tomorrow, as we bring another great conversation to your screen. Enjoy.