The Preventable Death of Abuja Court Official Shows Lack of Emergency Agency In Nigeria.

The death of the Finance Director for the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Nigeria was sad and shocking, the tale of government failure. Mr. Tony Okecheme and his driver were trapped in a rain flood while on their way to the Abuja airport on Friday. For a whole hour, the two men were trapped and waiting for rescue in broad day light with many people watching helplessly.

Eyewitnesses said the National Emergency Management Agency officials who came to the scene failed to rescue Okecheme and his driver who were reportedly trapped in the flood for about an hour before the water swept away the director. His car, a Toyota Camry, which was filled with mud water, was eventually pulled out of the ravines by the rescuers, who were angry that NEMA failed to rescue the man.

Abuja is not known for heavy rains or flooding. The flood that took the life of Mr. Okecheme was relatively mild and would not qualify for a major disaster. But for the main emergency relief agency, having been fully mobilized, and failing to rescue the stranded men within an hour is the real disaster.