The Koforidua -Sentimental area in New Juaben South Municipality in Eastern Region has been seriously flooded after a downpour on Tuesday afternoon.
The Sentimental area used to experience such devastating flooding whenever there was torrential rainfall but the New Juaben South Municipal Assembly was confident the newly constructed Nsukwao Basin Drainage project has fixed the flood problems in the area.
However, Tuesday’s downpour seems to have exposed this claim.
Many shops, homes were flooded after the floodwaters in the drainage overflew its bank. The main road was also flooded which made it difficult for motorists and pedestrians to cross.
Many parts of Koforidua continue to experience similar floods for the past two months leading to the loss of properties and displacement of occupants of homes and shops.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on August 4, 2020, cut sod for the construction of the GH¢15,811,145.00 Nsukwao Basin Drainage Project, in Koforidua under the Ghana Secondary Cities Support Programme (GSCSP) of the World Bank to mitigate the perennial flooding situation in the Municipality.
The project included the installation of four (4) storm water surface detention ponds distributed along the Nsukwao River, flow facilities, channelization, and stream bank stabilization, concrete pipes and culverts, and two access roads.
However, residents in New Juaben are questioning the quality of work done on the completed project hence calling on the World Bank and President Akufo Addo to investigate.
For the victims, the flood was the worst in many decades.
“It looks as if the leadership of the nation is not serious. This Nsukwao drainage is funded by the World Bank. So we were expecting a quality and excellent job, not this shoddy work. The consultant and contractor instead of breaking the old gutter and constructing a new gutter they didn’t do that rather did embankment at just one side and it couldn’t solve the problem. Many people are homeless now” Stephen Akakpo said.
Another resident Michael Ofosu said “We thought this project was to solve the flooding situation but it has become worst. The contractor did shoddy work. They should have excavated the gutter to 15ft. For the past 50 years, we have not witnessed such a magnitude of flooding in this area. It has destroyed everything. President and world bank should investigate this project”
Juliana Asantewa, escaped death when the floods collapsed parts of a room she was sleeping in during the incident.
“The flood collapsed my house and carried away all my monies about Ghc2,000 and that of my child’s money Ghc2, 500. I was in the room sleeping but all of sudden I saw part of the building collapsing; the floor water violently entered the room and carried away all my belongings”. She said while weeping.
A civil Engineer, Nii Addy, whose house was seriously flooded and a wall collapsed lamented that “the drainage system is not well constructed. I am a civil Engineer so when they started this I told the MCE that this drainage that they are doing there will cause us shortly. But they didn’t listen. He told me they have a consultant. This drainage system has tributaries -others joining it, so you need to dig this one down so all the tributaries will come and join it to flow but they didn’t do it like that, they just embarked on one side so little rains cause flood”.
However, the New Juaben South Municipal Assembly has admitted some engineering lapses on the project which has drawn the attention of the contractor to be fixed.
Source: Mybrytfmonline.com/Obed Ansah
