Following persistent down pour in some parts of Cross River State in the past three weeks, flood has swept away over one thousand houses and nine hundred farms across seven local government areas of the state.

Farms swept away inlude rice, cassava, yams, vegetables, cocoa and palms which were inundated and destroyed by flood.

The floods have caused the displacement of four thousand persons who are currently squatting with neighbours, friends and relatives.

The incident occurred in some communities in Ogoja, Obudu, Yala, Ikom, Etung, Boki, Abi and Biase local Government areas.

Assessing the disaster, the Director General, Cross River State Emergency Management Agency, SEMA, Mr John Inaku described the disaster as result of climate change as predicted by NIMET some months ago.

He said that he was satisfied with the resilience of the affected communities in mitigating the disaster attributing it to adequate publicity and sensitization by his agency.

Mr Inaku said that Government is employing its lean resources to ensure that the victims were provided with relief materials to cushion the effect of the disaster.

The Director-General urged them to exercise patience as government was taking pragmatic steps as well as mobilizing stakeholders to intervene in the disaster.

According to him, caution should be taken by farmers carrying out emergency harvesting of the flooded crops to avoid drowning while those in flooded homes should evacuate to higher grounds without delay.

Reacting, a victim in Odamagbudu village in Okpoma, Yala Local Government Area, Chief Ogar Odah said the scenario was fearful as Aya River that traverses the northern part of the state has over flooded its banks and has wrecked havoc on farms and villages along the coast.

He said he had lost substantial part of his rice, cassava, and yam farms, which according to him, would negatively affect the Economic status of his family.

Mr Okpotu Agbaka of Aakwa village in Okpoma observed that most houses were at the verge of collapsing due to the saturation of ground water, which is springing up everywhere including bedrooms.

Mr Agbaka said that most of the victims who were peasant farmers were suffering a double blow as both their houses and farms were affected and called for urgent intervention.

Some of the villages affected were Yahe, Okpoma, Ukelle North and South, Okuku and Yache in Yala Local Government Area, and Ukpagada, Alladim, Igodor, Ibil, Ikangdagha and Ekajuk in Ogoja Local Government Area.