BY FRANCIS IGATA
Motorists plying Ebeano Tunnel Road constructed in 2002 by former Governor Chimaroke Nnamani administration  of Enugu State are gnashing their teeth following the deplorable condition of one lane of the dual carriageway.

The affected lane, inward  Okpara Avenue axis of Enugu metropolis, has become near impassable especially when it rains even as the blockage of drainage  in the estate has forced a lagoon at the gate causing authorities to permanently lock the gate.

Nnamani had constructed the road as a short-cut to ease traffic around  Okpara   Avenue. The  road has a rail line on top.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo had, while commissioning the Ebeano Tunnel Road, described Nnamani’s vision  in constructing the road as “worthy of emulation”given the excruciating hours motorists  spend when  trying to access Okpara Avenue,GRA among other parts of the metropolis.

No doubt,the road, after  construction,has reduced the man-hours spent while  accessing parts of the metropolis while adding  economic value to users. That accounts for the huge traffic experienced on the road daily.

HOW THINGS WENT WRONG

The Chime administration was said engaged in a display of  property parcellation of the Ebeano Estate, thus blocking  drainage channels, which prevented  free flow of rain water in and out of the estate.

The action forced water to build a lagoon in front of the gate. Each  time it rains,the lane inward  Okpara Avenue becomes impassable occasioned by the high water level on the road while  the police  shut the Ebeano Tunnel Police Post, close to the lagoon for fear of being submerged.

The tiles on the tunnel structure are rapidly falling off as water forms pool at the base of the road causing the walls to be drenched permanently..

The activities of residents who pour debris into the drainage channels have further worsened a bad situation which is now threatening to wash away the road linking major parts of Enugu metropolis.

RESCUE UNDERWAY

Rolling up his sleeves,Commissioner for Works,Patrick Ikpenwa, told Sunday Vanguard,at the wash-out spot: “We have a situation in our hands. What you seeing is a palliative job to ensure that this wash-out does not get to the carriageway.

“Abinitio, if you have been passing through here,you will find  that immediately after it rains, there is flooding on top of this carriageway right from under the tunnel to this outlet. What  has  happened is that human activities have blocked the drainage channels. These activities   reduced the water waterways by some encroachments by some developers.

“Again,the runoff water has also increased for more volume of water entering into a small drainage channel blocked by debris. It causes it to begin to overflow at every rainfall coming from the upstream down to downstream. When it comes to this side,it washes out the carriageway and if not checked, the road will cave in.

“If we allow this situation,before the next rains,this road would have caved in. What we are doing is to provide a palliative measure because the situation at hand now cannot be handles fully to restore the nature of the road. We know that from dry season onset, a permanent solution will be provided. But before then, we have to make sure that this place is not cut into two”.

ECTDA VOWS TO RESOLVE ENCUMBRANCES

A worried Commissioner for Enugu Capital Territory Development Authority,ECTDA,Chidi Aro,vowed to resolve any encumbrances in line with Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi’s mandate on the condition of the road to avoid further toll motorists pass through.

Aro said:”Ugwuanyi has visited this site four times in one week. That shows the depth of concern he places on lives and property. The palliative measure put in place by the works people by dumping large stubs of gravel will reduce the force of Kinetic energy with which the water threatens to washout the carriageway.

“The large stubs of gravel will not allow the force of the water to eat deep into the carriageway. It will make the velocity diffuse. With that we can now control the level of the wash out pending the time dry season sets in for a permanent solutions. We are bent on resolving all the encumbrances that resulted in this situation. Where we need to apply law we not hesitate to do so. People should not build on waterways. The encroachment which is crystal clear is the cause of this problem. It has blocked the waterway considerably,that is why we are faced with this situation”.