Residents of Nsukka in Enugu State, Monday, expressed fear over some flooded parts of Nsukka-Enugu expressway caused by blocked water channels.

THE WHISTLER reports that the most affected parts are before the Prince Oil Filling State, close to Ogige Market. Both lanes of the road were waterlogged on Monday following early morning rain.

Motorists were seen plying against traffic to avoid the worst affected parts of the road.

“This is what we pass through during rainy seasons,” said a trader in front of the endangered zone, Mike. He continued, “The water channels have been blocked. We clear them at times, but the problem is that people dump refuse bags inside the gutter from afar. The bags then are pushed down to us. We have cried to the government a lot, but it seems the nightmare has come to stay.”

Some parents conveying their children and wards to school were forced to cancel the trips out of fear.

“About a month ago,” narrated a parent, “A JSS I female student of Urban Girls, Nsukka, was swept under this circumstance, and her corpse was recovered from far. I won’t risk my life and that of my daughter. My motorcycle has no capacity to pass through this waterlogged area. You can see that cars are avoiding the road.”

School children were seen trying to navigate the road, with most of them seeking alternative routes to their various destinations.

A civil servant, Malachy Eze, blamed ineffective local government administration on the escalating state of the road.

He said, “Nsukka LG administration is performing below par. If you live here, you’ll notice that there are many tax forces created to exploit and extort the poor masses. If you drive against the traffic, you are arrested and made to pay huge sums of levies. Traders pay all kinds of illegal charges. But the same council cannot keep the drainages clean to enable free flow of water when it rains. I expect that clearing of blocked water channels should be a continuous process. Then those throwing refuse inside the gutters should be prosecuted. But nobody cares.”

Some vehicles, supposedly spoilt by the waterlog, were seen parked along the road with no occupants in them.