HEAVY RAINS TO HIT TAMALE (PAGE 29)

SOON, the rainy season will be with us again. And as usual, it will come with its devastating consequences, including destruction of property and loss of lives.
The Northern Regional capital, Tamale, just like any other area in the country, has suffered from the effects of heavy rains in recent years. The latest of such rainstorms occurred in April 2007. There was massive destruction of property and many victims were thus rendered homeless.
Over 200 homes and school buildings in the metropolis had their roofs partly or completely ripped off. The storm also swept off a lot of trees from their roots, leading to the temporary blockage of some roads.
Also, destroyed were streetlights, traffic lights, electricity poles, kiosks and billboards. As a result of the danger that electrical cables which were strewn on roads and buildings posed, the VRA had to cut off power supply in the affected areas for a number of days to save lives.
Suburbs that are most affected in times of heavy rains are those in lowland areas. This has come about because there are no well cut-out drainage systems in those new communities and so whenever it rains, the houses are submerged in the rains, thus making the improvised roads unmotorable.
As a result, anytime the clouds are forming, some residents panic and wish that the rains never fall.
Some other reasons for the perennial floods in the metropolis are the practice of some people to build on water courses and in waterlogged areas.
Although work on the over GH¢ 62 million Tamale Storm Water Drainage Project, which was started in the latter part of 2003, has since been completed, more of such drainage systems need to be constructed to help address the situation.
On preparations by the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) towards preventing or minimising the impact of a possible rainstorm in the area this year, the Northern Regional Co-ordinator of the organisation, Alhaji Alhassan Mahmoud, said there was an ongoing sensitisation programme to alert the general public and also to educate them on the need to ensure regular maintenance of their structures.
“As the rainy season approaches, we advise houseowners to fortify their homes by ensuring their roofs are properly secured, walls are mended and water courses created, while existing ones are desilted to make way for free flow of water,” he indicated.
According to Alhaji Mahmoud, his outfit, in collaboration with some district assemblies in the region, had embarked on tree planting exercises in some communities to serve as wind breaks.
On the availability of relief items in case of any disaster, the co-ordinator said the organisation was now taking stock and evolving a transition programme.
Be it as it may, rains are certainly blessings from God. We need rains as much as it causes disaster. The onus lies on policy makers and stakeholders, including residents to come up with practicable measures and attitudes that will ensure that the impact of rainstorms are reduced to the barest minimum.