UMUAHIA (Sundiata Post) – The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), in conjunction with the Abia State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), has donated food items to victims of fire in six communities of the state.
The communities are situated in Arochukwu, Bende, Ohafia, Umuahia North, and Umuahia South Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state.
reports that the communities suffered severe fire outbreaks that destroyed private and public property worth millions of naira and left many people injured.
The incidents were said to have happened at different times between the last quarter of 2024 and January.
In a speech at the formal handover of the items to representatives of the communities in Umuahia on Thursday, the Executive Secretary of SEMA, Dr Sunday Jackson, said the gesture was intended “to cushion the effect of the fire on the victims”.
“These items may not be enough, considering the magnitude of the damage but they are meant to cushion the effect on the victims.
“The State and Federal Governments have shown their sympathies to the plight of the victims through SEMA and NEMA,” Jackson said.
He described the magnitude of the fire outbreaks as “overwhelming and far above the capacity of the communities to cope with”.
He, therefore, congratulated the benefitting communities for being considered by the approving authorities at the two agencies for the intervention.
According to him, many communities suffer different kinds of disasters and sometimes after the assessments and reports are made, not all the reports get approval.
“But in your own case, we did assessment and our report and luckily today you got approval, which is why we invited you to collect your items,” he said.
The SEMA boss said that after assessing the extent of the damage in the affected communities, he wrote to NEMA and it responded.
“On that note, I wish to appreciate NEMA for always being there for us at our challenging moments.
“Whenever we call on them, they always come to our rescue,” he said.
The Head of Operations, NEMA, Owerri Office, Mr Nnamdi Igwe, conveyed the condolences of the agency to the communities and individuals that were affected by the fire outbreaks.
Igwe said that it was the duty of NEMA to send its reports to the Federal Government after assessing any disaster.and expressed delight that Abia’s case was considered and approved.
He admonished the representatives of the affected communities to ensure that the items got down to the actual victims of the incidents.
“No matter how small the items may be, the intention is for the people to have a feeling that the Federal Government cared and responded to their needs at the trying moments of their lives,” Igwe said.
In a vote of thanks, one of the representatives of the benefitting communities, Chief Ken Nwachukwu, thanked SEMA and NEMA “for doing the needful to cushion the effect of the incidents on the victims”.
Nwachukwu, who hails from Ihite-Ude Ofeme in Umuahia North LGA, told in an interview that the fire occured in his community between January 1 and January 3.
He said that one person died in the community, while property worth millions of naira, including a part of his building and a section of the new Federal College of Education in the area, were damaged.
He appealed to the Federal Government for more interventions, especially with building materials, to assist the victims to fix their damaged buildings. (NAN)
