Nyanyano (C/R), Nov. 12, GNA – The tidal waves that devasted some communities in the Volta Region have sent shivers down the spines of some residents of Nyanyano, a coastal community in the Central Region.
According to the residents, they have been sitting on tenterhooks ever since the disaster occurred in Keta six days ago as they were likely to suffer the same fate due to their location.
In spite of their fears, they indicated that they were not prepared to relocate from the place on their own volition as indigenes of the community, citing the lack of lands and insisting that the sea was virtually pushing them away.
Reacting to the incident, the Nyanyano residents told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that the sea had been rough since Saturday and caused flooding in some homes, but had not resulted in any significant damage.
When the GNA visited the Community on Friday afternoon, the floodwaters had receded.
A fisherman, Mr Emmanuel Badu, mentioned that the sea occasionally flooded several homes and so some people were unable to stay in their homes for over a month when it does.
“We are afraid because of what has happened. We are very apprehensive. We are all praying that it doesn’t happen to us here or happen anywhere again,” he lamented.
A fishmonger, who only gave her name as Adwoa, corroborated the account of Mr Badu and averred that the floods only receded after more than two weeks.
“Sometimes it floods people’s rooms and forces them out of their homes. Some of the canoes are carried away in such occurrences. Right now, we are familiar with the behaviourial pattern of the water and so we have learnt to live with it,” she remarked.
Another fisherman, Mr Joseph Tetteh, attributed the coastal flooding to the end time, describing it as a punishment from God because of some citizens’ engagement in lesbian and gay activities.
“We have to pray for the mercies of God to save us from such disasters. This is the punishment of Sodom and Gomorrah coming upon us because of same-sex marriage. This is what we get for condoning gayism and lesbianism in the country” he maintained.
“Our ancestors lived here for ages and they did not experience any such thing. So, we also believe that nothing can happen to us,” another fisherman, Mr Kofi Apam retorted.
Speaking to the GNA, the Assemblyman for Nyanyano Upper Electoral Area, Mr Joshua Mbreye, admitted that the threat of coastal flooding to the community was real and that there was the need to take urgent measures to prevent any disaster.
He indicated that several efforts to have the government provide them with sea defence had failed, even though the Vice President made a promise to them.
“We have written to the DCE on several occasions and he says our concerns have been forwarded to the appropriate quarters.
“Before the Volta Region disaster, there was a similar incident in the Western Region. And so we knew that once it had happened to others, it could happen to us too and so we decided to go ahead of it. We have done all we can but to no avail,” he noted.
Mr Mbreye, therefore, made a passionate appeal to the Government for a sea defence as soon as possible to protect the Community against the tidal waves.
He revealed that the community was densely populated and it would be impossible to relocate victims should disaster strike.
Beyond the sea defence, the assemblyman also called on the government to help them dredge a choked lagoon which caused flooding at the least downpour.
“We also have a natural lagoon that joins the sea where others mine salt. And because of the gutter and the pressure from the other side, the lagoon gets choked any time it rains and it floods the whole area.
“We are pleading with the government to at least dredge the lagoon for us to check the floods,” he appealed.
GNA