About 60 buildings have been marked for demolition in Akungba Akoko in the Akoko South-West Local Government Area of Ondo State following the flood that wreaked havoc on the community on Monday.
A student of the Adekunle Ajasin University, Doyinsola Boluwaji, was swept away by flood, which also affected several buildings.
The chairman of the local government area, Dr Dapo Faseesin, said on Wednesday that all the buildings constructed by the drainage channels in the town would be demolished in the next one month in order to prevent the loss of lives to flood.
According to him, the occupants of the affected buildings will be given one month to vacate them and leave the area.
The affected buildings are located in the Medoline area of the town, where 500 students of the university reside.
It was gathered that many of the buildings in the area had no solid foundation and were built beside the canal.
“We will give them one month notice after which the buildings will be demolished. We cannot allow further loss of lives,” Faseesin stated.
The monarch of Akungba Akoko, Oba Sunday Ajimo, said some people were distorting the original plan of the town because of the existence of the university.
The traditional ruler expressed his delight over the planned action of the government to demolish the buildings along the waterway, saying it was a welcome development as it would prevent loss of lives.
The Deputy Vice-Chancellor, AAUA, Prof. Francis Gbore, described Boluwayi’s disappearance as unfortunate and explained that the missing student was in her room when she was swept away by the flood.
The don said, “A search team was constituted, yet we have not been able to find her. The director of works could not find her.
“This is a trying period for the university. There are students, who cannot access their homes in Akungba-Akoko.
“We demand more accommodation for students on the campus of the institution so that we can avoid this type of occurrence in the future.”
The Deputy Chief of Staff to Governor Rotimi Akeredolu, Dr Jimi Kufo, who represented the Deputy Governor, Mr Agboola Ajayi, at the scene of the incident, said the state emergency management agency would invite the environment ministry to participate in efforts to save the town from flooding.
Management of AAUA has said the female student of the institution, who was swept away by flood, has not been found.
The victim, a final-year student of the Department of Religious and African Studies of the university, who hails from Ekiti State, was swept away by flood in Akungba Akoko on Monday following a downpour.
In a statement by the institution’s acting Registrar, Mr Opeolu Akinfemiwa, AAUA said efforts were being intensified to find the missing student.
The statement said, “The university is leaving no stone unturned in its quest to find the missing student. Divers and other volunteers have been engaged to search the path of the river in a bid to find the missing undergraduate.”
The Head of Media and Protocol Unit, AAUA, Mr Victor Akinpelumi, told our correspondent on the telephone that the search party was still looking for Boluwaji as of the time of filing this report.
He stated, “As I am talking to you, our staff members, including the Chief Security Officer, the Director of Works, I and local divers are here at the scene of the incident.
“The problem we have is that the rain fell again this morning [Wednesday], making the water level to rise again. So, we are still on it; we have yet to find her. We resumed the search for her as early as 6:00am today [Wednesday]. But whether dead or alive, we must find her.”
A student of the university and resident of the flooded area, who identified himself simply as Adeyemo, stated that flood water entered Boluwaji’s apartment and as she was trying to escape, she fell and was swept away. Punch