Residents of some
communities in Saki West Council Area of Oyo State on Wednesday abandoned their
homes in panic following reported earth tremors.
The News Agency of
Nigeria (NAN) reports that the affected communities included Medina, Balako,
Salam Salam, Dauru-Salam as well as parts of Oke-suna.
Some of the residents,
who relocated, told NAN that with the threat, the likelihood of earthquake was
not impossible as the noise being heard from beneath the earth surface was
frightening.
According to Fatima
Ishola, a housewife, the persistent noise from below the earth surface had been
on the increase in the last couple of months.
“But it got to an alarming
level this week and particularly today (Wednesday) when the underground noise
and movement became too enormous and unbearable,“ she said.
Another resident, Mr
Ismail Muideen, appealed for urgent government intervention, noting that many
residents had fled their homes.
Various
government agencies had visited the affected areas several times in the last
two months.
The Deputy Speaker of Oyo
State and indigene of the area, Mr Musah Abdulwasi, confirmed the development
to NAN.
`` I have been to the
affected areas with very senior members of the Geology Department from
University of Ibadan.
“They hinted that there
is likelihood of heavy movement of rocks in the water channel beneath the
ground in those affected areas.
“They also advised that
evacuation of residents of affected areas is the only solution to tremor and
possible earthquake after establishing degree of tremor.
“Honestly, they told us
that no one could ascertain for now the degree of the tremor and whether it
will lead to earthquake or not,“ he said.
Also speaking, the
Caretaker Chairman of Saki West, Mr Kareem Adekoge, told NAN that the some
agencies which visited the affected areas had already allayed fears.
“Apart from the state
Ministry of Environment, the National Emergency Management Authority (NEMA) had
also visited the area.
“They promised to plant a
device that would be used to monitor the tremor level; they also said that the
situation might not be as bad as thought,” he said.
Adekoge, however,
confirmed that a middle-aged man lost his life as a fallout of the incident.
He said: “I think the man
was hypertensive and could not bear the threat of the noise and movement, so we
lost him to the incident.
“I also heard some people
are relocating but it is only tenants that can do that; will a landlord
relocate leaving his property behind? ‘’ (NAN)
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