A section of the flood area at Pwualugu
Many people in communities along the White and Black Volta in the Talensi District of the Upper East Region are still counting their losses after water from the Bagre Dam in Burkina-Faso submerged their farms and homes.
The farmers and their families watched helplessly with pain as the water destroyed their property.
It has become an annual affair where farmers lose their produce in the rainy season, especially when the opening of the Bagre Dam coincides with the seasonal rainfall in the Upper East Region.
This year, before the spill gates of the Bagre Dam were opened on Friday, August 31, the Upper East Region had recorded continuous rainfall, which caused the water levels in the White and Black Volta, as well as their tributaries to rise and overflow their banks.
A visit to the White Volta Basin at Pwalugu in the Talensi District, on Tuesday September 4, revealed acres of farmlands covered with water while the water level kept rising.
Prior to the spillage of water from the Bagre Dam, district officers of the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) across the Upper East Region had sensitized farmers and families living near the White and Black Volta to harvest their farm produce early and leave the area to protect their lives and property.
Unfortunately, some of the farmers preferred to pray, hoping that God would reduce the rainfall.
Meanwhile, a Deputy Regional Coordinator of NADMO, in charge of operation in the Upper East, Paul Wooma, said a rescue point manned by members of Operation Thunderbolt had been mounted at Walewale and equipped with adequate logistics to handle emergency cases.
He hinted that there are plans to mount another Rescue Point at Zebilla in the Bawku West District of the Upper East Region to quickly respond to emergency situations.
Meanwhile, some drivers using the Pwalugu Metal Bridge in the Talensi District of the Upper East Region have complained about the noise emanating from the bridge.
A local volunteer associated with NADMO, Martin Ayew, who shared similar sentiments, also bemoaned the noise from the metallic bridge since the beginning of August 2018.
He called on the relevant authorities to act to prevent the collapse of the bridge.
If that happens, people in the Upper East would be cut-off from the Northern Region and the rest of the country, and if people decide to travel at all cost, they would have to pay more to travel for close to 20 hours to get to Accra.
From Ebo Bruce-Quansah, Pwualugu