Catastrophic flooding unleashed by relentless rainfall has claimed at least 110 lives in central Nigeria’s Niger State, with entire neighborhoods swallowed by raging waters in a disaster local leaders describe as the worst in six decades. The tragedy, confirmed by Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) Director-General Abdullahi Baba-Arah in an exclusive interview with RNG247, has left communities in ruins and survivors pleading for urgent federal intervention.  

Torrential downpours pounded Mokwa town for hours on end this week, triggering flash floods that cascaded through residential areas with devastating force. Baba-Arah reported that surging floodwaters “completely submerged and swept away more than 50 households,” trapping families in their homes and collapsing critical infrastructure. The hardest-hit districts—Tiffin Maza and Anguwan Hausawa—now resemble war zones, with mud-brick buildings reduced to rubble and roads transformed into debris-choked rivers.  

Mokwa District Head Muhammad Shaba Aliyu, visibly shaken while surveying the damage, told RNG247, “This scale of destruction is unimaginable. We haven’t seen flooding like this since the 1960s. Our people are stranded, our farms destroyed—we beg President Tinubu’s administration to send aid before disease spreads.”  

The disaster strikes as Nigeria enters its 2025 rainy season, a period increasingly marked by climate-driven extremes. Northern states endured similar chaos in 2024 when historic floods killed hundreds, displaced over 200,000 residents, and crippled bridges and power lines. The crisis echoes 2022’s nationwide deluge, which displaced 1.3 million Nigerians and claimed over 600 lives, exposing the country’s fragile disaster preparedness systems.  

Critics argue that failed urban planning, deforestation, and inadequate drainage networks have turned seasonal rains into annual death traps. NSEMA officials now warn that displaced survivors face heightened risks of cholera outbreaks and food shortages, with floodwaters contaminating wells and drowning livestock.  

As rescue teams comb through sludge for missing residents, the Niger State government has declared Mokwa a disaster zone and launched emergency relief operations. But with meteorological agencies predicting heavier rains through August, fears mount that Nigeria’s flood nightmare is far from over.