Bola Bamigbola
A heavy rainstorm on Saturday evening caused widespread damage to buildings across Osogbo, Osun State, displacing numerous residents.
Roofs of residential, religious, and commercial buildings were blown off in several parts of the city, including Testing Ground, Oke Oniti, Awosuru, Gbongan Road, and Oke Baale.
Residents were seen moving their belongings while repair work commenced on damaged structures.
A fallen billboard along Osogbo–Gbongan Road briefly obstructed traffic on the busy route until it was cleared.
Pastor Israel, whose church in Testing Ground was affected, called on the government to provide support for displaced residents.
“The roofs of many buildings in this area got blown off. Many people are displaced. The government should provide succour and relief materials to ease the trauma,” he said.
Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, in a statement issued by his spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, described the incident as “sad and unfortunate” and pledged support for affected residents through the Osun State Emergency Management Agency.
He said, “I feel deeply touched and alarmed by the incident. My administration will put in place all morally and officially possible measures to offset the losses incurred by victims in Osogbo and other affected communities. I have also directed the Ministry of Works to clear the motorways swiftly to prevent further accidents.”
The governor attributed the increasing frequency of natural disasters to climate change and urged residents to adopt mitigating actions such as tree planting and avoiding indiscriminate felling of trees.
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