Houses built on Lagos sand-filled lands risk collapse

Houses built on sand-filled parcels of land in Lagos are now under threat of imminent collapse as affected property stand the risk of being washed away in the event of any natural disaster, our correspondent has gathered.
This, it was learnt, is due to the failure of property developers in the affected parts of the state to carry out proper Environmental Impact Assessment before erecting the buildings on the sand-filled lands.
The recurring ocean surge coupled with massive flooding of some highbrow areas such as Lekki, Ajah and parts of Victoria Island in Lagos, where property worth several billions of naira is lost annually, has only raised the bar of fears that such an environment could only be harbouring avoidable disasters waiting to happen, unless urgent drastic measures are put in place by the authorities.
A week-long investigation by our correspondent revealed that most of the affected areas were not initially designated and used as residential zones. But some greedy land speculators had hurriedly sand- filled the flood-prone areas, which they finally allocated to super-rich individuals, who bought plots at outrageous prices and put up “befitting houses” that have now become “doomed homes,” where ocean surges pose serious threats to lives and property.
At the Oworonsoki axis of the Third Mainland Bridge, where sand-filling is currently going on, it was observed that the water level had risen, flooding the adjourning streets and homes as a result of lack of supportive infrastructure for effective outflow.
It was also noticed that there was no channel for water to flow through as drainages have become non-existent, not to talk of the dikes to hold it so that water does not spill over.
A resident of the area, Mr. Raymond Tedunjaye, told our correspondent that there had been uncontrolled dredging at one end of the Oworonsoki area before the state government signified its interest in the area.
Tedunjaye, however, said that illegal dredgers had, “only compounded the chaotic situation”.
An engineer and member of the Building Society of Nigeria, Mr. Jacob Alao, said, “The natural canals have been wholly blocked as a result of the activities of the dredgers, who now work sideways with government officials. Water stays with us here because the drainages are not flowing as a result of refuse dumps.”
It was also discovered that the destruction of property in the aforementioned areas were also as a result of negligence on the part of a government, which has failed to show total commitment to the provision of some critical infrastructure, especially along the coastal regions.
Only recently, Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwumi Ambode, directed landlords having property in the coastal areas of the state to relocate.
It could not be ascertained if the governor’s directive had been strictly adhered to.
But the government has also risen to defend the ongoing project at Eko Atlantic City, which it declared safe as it “does not have its own fair share of the flooding calamities.”