Two assemblies in flood-prone areas of Accra have indicated their readiness for the rainy season.

The Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) and the Korle Klottey Municipal Assembly (KoKMA) say they have taken preventive steps to prevent their flood-prone communities from being hard hit this year.

They said the measures which included the provision of infrastructure, sensitisation and enforcement of bye-laws were adequate to help absorb any amount of rainfall.

Speaking to the Daily Graphic in separate interviews about their preparedness for the onset of the rainy season, both the Municipal Chief Executive Officer of KoKMA, Nii Adjei Tawiah, and the Head of Public Affairs of the AMA, Mr Gilbert Nii Ankrah, gave the assurance that the preventive action taken would help avert the levels of flooding that displaced people in the past.

AMA

Nii Ankrah said as part of the provision of infrastructure, the assembly had completed the reconstruction and expansion of some drains while other works were still ongoing.

He said the completed projects included the expansion of a drain from Ring Road to Odawna.

Also, he said the scope of work on the Obetsebi Lamptey Interchange also included the construction of some drains as well as expansion of the drains around the Royal House Chapel.

That, he said, would also help to reduce the flood situation in the area.

Aside from that, he said the assembly had also embarked on massive desilting of some major drains within the metropolis.

Enforcing the law

On sensitisation, Nii Ankrah said the assembly had launched a campaign to educate residents of the area on the effects of indiscriminate dumping of refuse, particularly into drains.

In that regard, he said a team from the assembly had visited many communities within the metropolis, particularly those around the flood-prone areas to educate them.

“Having undertaken the sensitisation and education drive for a while, the assembly has begun enforcing the law, and already we have prosecuted about 50 persons for disposing of refuse in an unlawful manner,” the AMA Public Affairs Manager explained.

That, he explained, “is to send the signal to others that we won’t spare them if we should get hold of them.

“With all these in place, I am very certain that this year will be different from the previous years as far as flooding in the metropolis is concerned,” he emphasised.

KoKMA

Mr Tawiah also indicated that together with some of the residents, the assembly had embarked on regular clean-up exercises and dredged the drains to allow the free flow of water.

He observed that due to the geographical location of the area, water from the mountainous zones flowed through the municipality to get to the sea.

In spite of that, he said the drains in the area were not large enough to contain such quantum of water and that also contributed to the perennial floods.

To address the situation, he said the assembly had expanded most of the drains which led into the Odaw and had also dredged the Korle Lagoon and some other drains in Osu and Adabraka.

Also, he stated that people living in the very low-lying areas had been advised to take precautionary measure to protect their property.

“The geographical location of some areas of the municipality puts it under pressure when it rains, but we are hoping that the steps taken this year based on past experiences would help avert the inconvenience people suffer when it rains.

“As an assembly, we have ensured that the drains are desilted and dredged; we will also be on the lookout for the indiscriminate dumping of refuse in the drains.

Residents in the flood-prone areas have also been advised to take steps to protect their lives and property during the season,” Mr Tawiah said.

Observation

When the Daily Graphic went round some of the flood-prone areas such as Adabraka, Odawna and Official Town, it observed that the drains that were cleared some time ago were still without culverts.

Some of the drains had begun collecting plastic waste again.

Also, very little had been done to discourage activities of the scrap dealers on the banks of the Odaw on the Graphic Road through to Agbogbloshie, which also contributed to the area getting flooded.