By Fresh Facts Magazine Staff Reporter
For the people of Akute, Isheri, Magboro, and a string of riverbank communities stretching along the Ogun River, the rhythm of life is once again changing. Buckets, bags, and plastic chairs are being lifted onto rooftops. Livestock are being herded away. And conversations in markets and bus stops have turned, once again, to the rising waters.
The Ogun State Government, for the third time this year, has sounded a familiar warning — prepare for possible flooding. The trigger: another controlled release of water from the Oyan Dam, expected between October 20 and November 3.
According to the Commissioner for Environment, Mr. Ola Oresanya, the release has become necessary following heavy rainfall in northern Nigeria, which has pushed water levels at the dam close to their safety threshold. “The overflow of the Ogun River is inevitable,” Oresanya said. “Residents in flood-prone areas should move to higher ground or temporarily relocate to avoid loss of lives and property.”
A Familiar Fear
For Mrs. Abimbola Akinyemi, a fish farmer in the Makogi area of Ifo Local Government, the announcement stirs memories of last year’s flood. “We lost almost everything,” she told Fresh Facts. “The water came in the night — by morning, my fish ponds were gone. We had to start all over again. Now, once we hear ‘Oyan Dam release,’ we start packing.”
She’s not alone. Across affected communities, families are stacking sandbags, moving valuables upstairs, and keeping vigil over the clouds. “We don’t sleep well during this period,” said Mr. Idris Lawal, a resident of Isheri-North. “Even when it rains in Kaduna, we worry here in Ogun because we know the water will come.”
Government’s Precautionary Steps
The government insists it is not leaving residents to fate. Oresanya explained that his ministry, in collaboration with the Ogun-Osun River Basin Development Authority (OORBDA), has been dredging tributaries and clearing waterways to ease the flow of water and minimize flooding.
He also noted that the state has improved water management at the dam. In 2025, the Oyan Dam released 12,000 million litres per day, down from 17,000 million litres in 2024 — a sign, he said, of “painstaking management of flood risks.”
Still, nature remains a formidable opponent. “Our mitigation measures cannot completely stop natural occurrences, especially as Ogun is one of Nigeria’s coastal states feeling the full impact of climate change,” the commissioner acknowledged.
Communities at the Edge
From Akute to Kajola, Abeokuta’s Lafenwa to Enugada, many of the listed communities sit on low-lying wetlands through which the Ogun River winds its way south toward the Lagos Lagoon. Their vulnerability is geographical — the state is a natural outlet for rainwater and upstream releases from the north.
The floods come almost every year. In 2022, more than a dozen communities were submerged after weeks of torrential rain and dam spillage. In 2023, hundreds were displaced. And in 2024, though the volume of release was higher, better coordination helped avert a major disaster.
This year, residents hope that early warnings and improved dam regulation will prevent a repeat of those nightmare scenes.
Holding on to Hope
For many, the floods have become a test of resilience — and faith. At Lafenwa, near Abeokuta, 70-year-old farmer, Pa Olowosile, recalled how he lost his maize farm in last year’s floods. “The water didn’t just take my crops,” he said softly, “it took my strength. But you can’t fight the river — you learn to live with it.”
As the next round of dam releases begins, the state government is appealing for calm and cooperation. Fish farmers have been advised to harvest early; residents are urged to stay vigilant, and community leaders have been asked to help spread the warning.
Still, beneath the official reassurances lies a deeper truth — that for thousands living along the Ogun River, flooding is no longer an emergency; it’s a season.
And while government engineers regulate gates at Oyan, families on the floodplains brace once more for the rising tide — hoping, this time, the river shows mercy.
