Health
Windstorm kills three, displaces residents in Yobe
Kasim Isa Muhammad
Three persons have been confirmed dead while several others sustained injuries after a powerful windstorm accompanied by rainfall wreaked havoc in Gashua, the headquarters of Bade Local Government Area of Yobe State, on Wednesday evening.
PUNCH Metro learnt that the storm, which lasted for about 30 minutes, destroyed hundreds of houses, shops, business premises, telecommunications infrastructure, and electricity poles, leaving many residents homeless and property worth millions of naira damaged.
The Chairman of Bade Local Government Area, Ibrahim Babagana, described the incident as one of the worst disasters the area had witnessed in decades.
“It was a devastating windstorm that started around 5:30 pm on Wednesday and lasted for only 30 minutes. I can confirm to you that three persons have died from the incident, while others are receiving medical attention at the Gashua Specialist Hospital, with a few others discharged,” Babagana said.
He added, “This is one of the worst windstorms I have ever witnessed in my life. We have not experienced such a storm in the last few decades; almost every resident of Gashua has been affected in one way or another. Houses, shops, roofs, telecommunication masts, and electricity poles have been seriously affected.”
The council chairman said the scale of the destruction had overwhelmed the local government’s capacity to respond, prompting a request for emergency assistance from the Yobe State Emergency Management Agency.
“The scale of the destruction has exceeded the response capacity of both the affected communities and the Local Government. There is an urgent need for immediate government intervention to provide relief materials and temporary shelter for victims,” he said.
A resident of Gashua, Muhammad Isa, said the accompanying wind, rather than the rainfall, caused the widespread devastation across the town.
“The rainfall itself was not particularly heavy, but the accompanying windstorm caused unprecedented destruction,” Isa said.
He added that several houses collapsed while telecommunications infrastructure suffered extensive damage.
“Some telecommunications masts were completely brought down, while others suffered structural damage,” he said.
Isa attributed the increasing intensity of windstorms in the area to widespread deforestation.
“Trees previously served as natural windbreaks, helping to reduce wind speed and regulate the local microclimate. Their removal through farming, land clearing, and urban expansion has left communities more exposed to destructive winds,” he said.
He warned that continued indiscriminate tree felling could result in more frequent and severe disasters.
Several residents described the incident as one of the worst natural disasters to hit Gashua in recent years, saying many households lost their homes, businesses, food items, and other valuables.
Although some residents claimed that four people died in the incident, the figure could not be independently verified.
The Medical Director of the Specialist Hospital, Gashua, Dr Akinola Adekunle, confirmed that casualties from the disaster were recorded at the facility.
“Two people lost their lives, while several others sustained varying degrees of injuries,” Adekunle said.
He added that all injured victims had received treatment and were subsequently discharged from the hospital.
Meanwhile, the Yobe State Emergency Management Agency said it had deployed emergency response teams to assess the impact of the disaster in Bade, Yunusari, and Bursari Local Government Areas.
The agency said personnel and volunteers from Jakusko, Karasuwa, Geidam, and Nguru Local Government Areas had joined the assessment exercise.
According to the agency, preliminary findings showed that hundreds of homes were damaged, with vulnerable households accounting for the majority of those affected.
Gashua, which lies close to the Yobe-Kumodugu River, is also prone to seasonal flooding, compounding the challenges facing residents affected by the latest disaster.
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