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ANOTHER sudden hydro meteorological event in 2025
. 0:35 Heavy flooding overruns Monzero amid 0:37 torrential rain. Residents call for 0:40 government action blame poor drainage 0:42 system. 0:45 Liberia's capital city, Monrovia, came 0:48 under siege early Wednesday morning when 0:50 a torrential downpour lasting more than 0:52 6 hours submerged several communities, 0:55 damaged homes, and displaced families. 1:00 From 1:00 a.m. until nearly 7:00 a.m., 1:03 heavy rains accompanied by fierce 1:05 lightning, thunder, and violent storms 1:07 left behind flooded neighborhoods and 1:09 impassable roads across Monzero County. 1:14 One of the hardest hit areas was Omega 1:16 Market in Payneesville, one of the 1:18 busiest commercial hubs in the capital. 1:21 Homes and market stalls were overtaken 1:23 by rising water, leaving traders and 1:26 residents scrambling for safety. Z 1:28 the weather is 1:30 the soul clinic community, New Hope, 1:32 Jacob Town, Dupport Road, Zay community, 1:36 and also in Monrovia were also severely 1:38 affected. 1:41 In Soul Clinic, several houses were 1:43 inundated with water rising knee deep 1:46 inside living rooms. In Zay community, 1:49 the main road was temporarily covered, 1:52 cutting off traffic and stranding 1:54 commuters. 1:56 Residents 1:59 pointed to clogged drainage, poor 2:01 sanitation habits, and the encroachment 2:04 of structures on natural waterways as 2:06 the leading causes of the flooding. 2:10 Many blamed the lack of proper urban 2:12 planning and called on the government to 2:14 take urgent action. 2:18 The flooding comes just months after the 2:20 National Disaster Management Agency, 2:22 NDMA, issued repeated warnings about the 2:25 looming risks of this year's rainy 2:27 season. 2:30 Back in June, NDMA Director General Han 2:32 Ansu Dulla cautioned that over 60,000 2:35 Liberians living in low-lying areas were 2:38 at risk of displacement due to projected 2:40 heavy rainfall. 2:44 At the Ministry of Information, Cultural 2:46 Affairs and Tourism Mic regular press 2:49 briefing Dulla stressed that Monrovia 2:51 could face average rainfall levels 2:53 exceeding 1,000 mm between June and 2:56 September. 3:01 With Wednesday's disaster reinforcing 3:03 the NDMA's projections, residents are 3:06 now demanding not just warnings, but 3:09 urgent interventions. Many are appealing 3:11 to the government and international 3:13 partners to speed up drainage clearing 3:15 projects, enforce bans on wetland 3:17 encroachment, and provide immediate 3:19 relief for displaced families. 3:23 Every year, the story is the same, said 3:26 a frustrated resident of Soul Clinic. We 3:28 don't want only to talk, we want to see 3:30 action before lives are lost. 3:34 The NDMA says it continues to work with 3:37 partners like the World Bank under the 3:39 Urban Resilience Project to clear 3:41 drainages and finalize a disaster risk 3:44 financing strategy to unlock 3:46 international emergency support. Young 3:48 people in 3:50 But for many Monsero residents, today's 3:52 flooding is proof that time is already 3:55 running out. 3:58 As the rains continue this season, the 4:00 threat of more devastating floods looms 4:03 large, testing both government 4:05 preparedness and the resilience of 4:07 ordinary Liberians. 4:09 Uh earlier this morning, this I mean was 4:11 even worse than what it looks like. 4:13 Meanwhile, the consignment valued at 4:16 $70,000 4:17 was secured from the World Bank financed 4:19 Liberia urban resilience project through 4:22 the public works ministry. 4:25 It includes 220 heavyduty galvanized 4:28 wheelbarrows, 810 steel blade shovels, 4:32 440 carbon steel blade cutlesses, and 4:35 440 hand diggers. 4:39 Speaking on Wednesday, September 24th, 4:42 2025 in Monrovia, acting public works 4:45 minister Jasilia Tapla urged beneficiary 4:48 communities to effectively use the hand 4:50 tools to keep their drainages clean. 4:54 Flooding in Monrovia has long been 4:56 attributed to poor drainage 4:58 infrastructure and inadequate 5:00 maintenance of existing systems. 5:04 Acting Minister Taplas said the tools 5:06 determine the ministry's way to get them 5:08 actively involved in reducing constant 5:11 flooding in Monrovia and its 5:13 surroundings. 5:16 Meanwhile, Liberia Urban Resilience 5:18 Project Coordinator Gabriel Fleabbo said 5:22 the tools are to empower local 5:24 communities to regularly engage in 5:26 cleaning of their drainages. 5:29 Fleo said the initiative is to enhance 5:32 communitydriven sustainable drainage 5:34 maintenance and flood prevention efforts 5:36 by the public works ministry in greater 5:38 Monrovia. 5:41 He said the donation to the 44 5:43 communities was conceived to complement 5:45 a recent emergency drainage cleaning 5:48 exercise by the ministry. 5:52 The project coordinator however 5:54 disclosed that the hand tools will be 5:56 frequently monitored to ensure proper 5:58 maintenance and sustainability of 6:00 drainage cleaning initiatives. 6:04 Also speaking, the head of zinc camp 6:06 community on the Bushrod Island, Musu 6:09 Solomon, thanked the World Bank Liberia 6:11 Urban Resilience Project and the public 6:14 works ministry for the donation. 6:18 The Liberia Urban Resilience Project is 6:20 a six-year partnership between the 6:22 government of Liberia and the World Bank 6:24 to improve urban planning, flood, and 6:27 climate resilience in Liberia through 6:29 transformative infrastructure and 6:31 capacity building initiatives.
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