Umudim community in Imezi-Owa, Ezeagu Local Government Area of Enugu State, has called on the state government to intervene in the soil erosion that cut off the community from the rest of the local government and other parts of the state.

President-General, Umudim Development Association, Barr. Chidi Onuorah, who made the call, stated that the double culvert erected by the community several years ago, through community efforts to provide access between the community and neboughring towns have been washed off by rain.

Onuorah disclosed that the heavy rain which fell last Wednesday, washed off the Enugu-Onitsha expressway from the MOPOL Junction up to the Umuaji junction.

The PG said the community has for more than 30 years, managed to contain the volume of water along the road.

“Communal efforts have been engaged in the maintenance of the road, but the current level of devastation has gone beyond us,” Onuorah stated.

According to him, the popular UBA Junction is the only access point to the Umudim community and other part of Ezema community, particularly those living around the Ugwu-Ezema axis.

“As at now, the double culvert, earth embankments and other remedial measured put in place by the community to channel rain water successfully through the community, have been washed away,” he said.

He called for the intervention of the state and local government, as well as the ecology office to rescue the community from the situation.

A youth leader, John Nebeife, explained how the youths have been working on failed portions of the community roads, carrying laterite, mixing sand and cement to erect several culverts and clearing weeds from the gutters every raining season for over 30 years to ensure that rain water finds easy access after every rainfall.

He lamented that all their efforts “have been laid waste by the last rainfall, which totally damaged everything we have been doing all these years.”