At least 37 people killed in flooding in northeastern Nigeria

By Timothy Olanrewaju

LAGOS, Nigeria (AA) - At least 37 people have been killed and around 400,000 others displaced following massive flooding in Nigeria's northeastern city of Maiduguri, an official said Thursday.

The Director General of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Zubaida Umar, said at a national emergency coordination meeting in the capital Abuja that 37 bodies were recovered by a search and rescue team following heavy floods on Tuesday.

The floods hit Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State, with schools, hospitals, government offices, a zoo, worship centers, banks, markets and commercial areas submerged.

Authorities described the flooding as the worst incident in recent decades.

Barkindo Saidu, director-general of the Borno State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), told Anadolu that search and rescue operations are continuing.

"The search and rescue operations are still ongoing. The government has established nine camps for the displaced, and we have started providing food, blankets, clothes, mats and money to them as immediate responses," he told Anadolu

Nearly half the city is still submerged two days after the devastating floods, he added.