A pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God in the Apata area of Ibadan, Oyo State, and his family members were rescued by policemen attached to the Apata Police Division after water submerged major parts of the premises as a result of the heavy rain on Wednesday.
Eyewitnesses said the family was trapped in the church during the downpour.
The police, firefighters from the state secretariat and Oluyole Estate, officers of the Federal Road Safety Corps and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps reportedly raced to the area around 8am when information spread that several people were trapped in the Gbekuba area of Apata.
An eyewitness, who is a residence of the area, said policemen who could swim entered the water which covered about two kilometres of the surface to rescue people.
He said, “I met the Divisional Police Officer of the Apata division and his men, fire service men, NSCDC and FRSC at the scene. Wrong information was circulated which indicated that pupils of a secondary school in the area were trapped on the school premises when the water level rose as a result of the heavy rain. It was also alleged that robbers were taking advantage of the situation to rob people.
“The truth is that there was no pupil in the school because the school had closed by that time and there was no robbery because of the huge presence of security agencies there. A Redeemed Church was submerged by the water, but the pastor and his family, who were trapped inside, were rescued. The church fence also collapsed. I was able to enter my house after 2am.”
The state Police Public Relations Officer, Adekunle Ajisebutu, confirmed the incident, but added that no life was lost.
“A family was rescued to safety when their apartment was submerged by water. Policemen were at the scene and no life was lost. Apart from this, there was no other reported incident during or after the rain,” he said.
Our correspondent, who moved around the city on Thursday, observed that communities close to river beds were affected by the rain.
Farmers who took advantage of the river beds to site their ponds recorded heavy losses as the ponds were submerged.
“I have lost all that I invested in my fish farm. I have five ponds with more than 6,000 fish that were to be harvested next month, but they have been washed away,” said a fish farmer, Mr. Adetunji Animasaun in the Bako area of the city.
Also affected was the rail line that passed through the Bako area.
The base of the line was completely washed away by the rain, leaving the rail line precariously suspended.
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