Lagos closes public schools after Deadly rain

The Lagos State Government on Sunday asked pupils of public schools in the state to stay at home on Monday (today) to allow the government carry out an impact assessment of the floods in the state.

A statement by the Commissioner for Environment, Mr. Tunji Bello, quoted Governor Babatunde Fashola as also asking proprietors of private schools to take a cue from the government by asking their pupils to also stay at home today.
It said though the governor was mindful of the fact that the students would commence their examinations on Tuesday, it wished to “appeal for special dispensation to protect these children— the most vulnerable members of our society—from the devastating effects the floods and heavy rains can cause.”
The statement reads in part, “Due to the heavy downpour experienced in Lagos State today(Sunday), His Excellency, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, has directed that all children in public schools remain at home tomorrow (Monday) to enable the state government assess the impact of the floods on property and social infrastructure across the state.
“Even though the drainages across the state were recently cleared and fully operative, the high level of water from the rainfall like recent occurrences in the developed and developing world have been unusually high, which no standard drainage- no matter how efficient can contain.
“The state government had earlier warned that the rains this year are likely to be more intense than usual, and these predictions are manifesting. There are no guarantees that these intense rains will not continue. What the state government guarantees however, is that all our resources have been deployed to minimise the impact of the floods and minimise the inconvenience of this natural occurrence. Our men are on the field 24 hours to assuage the sufferings of Lagosians during these times.
“We therefore appeal for patience and extra precaution from all Lagosians to mitigate the dangers that the persistent rains have caused.
“We would like to seize this opportunity to also appeal to workers, to as much as possible, keep within the confines of their homes to avoid congestion on the roads and highways. Businessmen and self employed citizens who can afford to work from home should please do so tomorrow to enable us work throughout the day without congestion on the roads.”