The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has provided an update on the relief interventions delivered to flood victims in Bayelsa.

The agency in a statement signed by Mr Manzo Ezekiel, Head, Press Unit, on Saturday said that on Oct. 8, assorted relief materials comprising of food and non-food items were delivered to victims.

“On Oct. 8, the agency through our South-South Zonal office delivered to Bayelsa State assorted relief materials comprising of food and non-food items for immediate distribution at communities affected by flood.

“The items were distributed directly to the affected persons in Etegwe and Ibelebiri communities of Yenagoa Local Government Area of the state.

“The items distributed were: 400 bags of 10 kg rice, 400 bags of 10kg maize, 300 bags of 10kg garri, 50 kegs vegetable oil, 200 cartons of tin tomato, 200 cartons of indomie, 200 bundles of roofing sheets, 200 bags of cement, 40 bags of 3″nails and 50 packets of zinc nails,” he said.

He added that considering the devastating impacts of flood in the state, additional relief materials were approved for delivery.

“This time around, road transportation had become difficult due to the heavy flooding of the East West Road linking to the state.

“Therefore, assistance of the Nigerian Airforce was obtained in the airlifting of relief items from Benin Airport to Port Harcourt International Airport and subsequent use of helicopters to move the items to the helipad in Yenagoa, the state capital.

“The airlifting of the relief materials commenced on Tuesday Oct. 25, and is continuing.

“So far, the additional relief items delivered are: 1,000 pieces of mosquito nets, 600 cartons of bath soap, 2,500 pieces of guinea brocade, 1,000 pieces of children’s wear, 1,000 pieces of women’s wear, 1,000 pieces of men’s wear and 8,000 pieces of nylon mats,” he said.

He added that food items were also approved for the second batch of the relief intervention in the same state.

“The food items in the second approved relief intervention which are being delivered to the state are: 1,000 bags of 10kg of rice, 1,000 bags of 10kg of beans, 1,000 bags of 10kg of maize, 75 bags of 20kg of iodized salt,150 cartons of seasoning cube, 75 kegs of 20L of Vegetable oil and 75 cartons of tin tomato.

“Further to the above, the agency has procured more relief items for third intervention in less than a month to be delivered to the state as follows; 1,000 bags of 10kg of rice, 1,000 bags of 10kg of beans, 1,000 bags of 10kg of garri, 300 bags of 20kg of iodized salt.

” Others are: 200 cartons of seasoning, 100 kegs of 20L of vegetable oil, 1,000 pieces of foam mattresses, 1,500 pieces of nylon mats, 1,000 pieces of blankets, 2,000 pieces of mosquito treated net, 800 pieces of Guinea brocade, 1,500 pieces of children’s wear and 500 pieces of wax prints,” he said.

Ezekiel added that unfortunately, trucks conveying some of the additional second and third interventions of food and non-food items were stuck in Kogi and other locations on the way to Bayelsa due to flooding.

“Gladly, some of the vehicles have been removed with assistance from our stakeholders and are presently moving to deliver the relief items to complement the efforts of the Bayelsa State Government in providing succour to the flood affected persons.

“NEMA intervention team is presently in the state and will work with the State Emergency Management Agency and other stakeholders to carry out detailed assessment of devastating impacts of the flood for possible further assistance to the affected persons.

“In addition to the relief intervention, NEMA in collaboration with the Nigerian Navy through NNS Soroh in Bayelsa and NNS Pathfinder in Rivers, Nigerian Red Cross, Local Volunteers carried out evacuation of persons on the East -West Road from and to Bayelsa.

“The Director-General of NEMA, Mustapha Ahmed, appreciates the collaboration of the Nigerian Airforce, Nigerian Navy and other stakeholders that supported the agency in our relief items in Bayelsa and other states across the country.

“The D-G NEMA, on behalf of the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Farouq, sympathises with the government and people of Bayelsa as well as all that have been affected by the flood.

“He also conveyed assurances of the Federal Government’s continuous support and assistance to the affected persons,” he said.

Kunta Kinteh Island, previously known ad James Island, is a small island that is located in the Gambia River, close to the historic settlement of Albreda, within the Islamic Republic of The Gambia.

The first Europeans who have reached the land of the island in 1456, were the Portuguese navigators, Antoniotti Usodimare and Luiz de Cadamosto, giving the name Saint Andrew’s Island, after a sailor who had died and was buried there.

Still, the first Europeans who reached the island were the people from the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia, which was a vassal state of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, however, the English Crown has given the island previously to two separate companies, to operate in the area.

Finally, in 1651, those who have settled the island, built a fortress which was an important trade base for the Duchy of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, naming it Jacob Fort, after Jacob Kettler, who was the Duke of Courland.

Nevertheless, they did not hold on to the fort for a long time, where from 1659 until 1661, the Dutch had a control over it, so that the English would capture it and take control over everything in 1664.

At that time the island was renamed to James Island, thus giving the fortress its name Fort James, after the Duke of York, who later became King James II of England.

Over the years, Kunta Kinteh Island changed many owners, and was even the infamous place for the West African slave trade, from where many people were taken as slaves to mostly North America.

When the slave trade became illegal in 1807 with the Slave Trade Act, the British Empire built the Six-Gun Battery in 1816, and Fort Bullen in 1826 on both sides of the mouth of the River Gambia, so that they will battle with those who wanted to make profit from enslaving people.

Nowadays, the small island that still has an important strategic place, has the legacy of a person who was captured and taken to the United States as slave.

The New York artist, Chaz Guest, on 6 February 2011 requested from the Gambian President Yahya Jammeh to rename the island to Kunta Kinteh in honor of Kunta Kinteh, who in 1767 was captured and taken to Maryland, so that he would be sold as a slave.

Having a great importance for the people of West Africa, Kunta Kinteh Island nowadays is struggling with the still ongoing heavy erosion, which has shrunk the island, making it one sixth of the size it had during the active years.

With the ruins of several British administrative buildings that can be seen on the small island, as well as a small jetty and a number of skeletal baobab trees, the island has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list since 2003.

That is the reason why many tourist are going to the island to see in person what has been left from the fortifications, and since 1986, Gambia’s Department of State for Tourism and Culture has established the annual International Roots Homecoming Festival, which is conducted as a ‘heritage week’, which is actually an event that aims to encourage the African Diaspora to tour the sites.

Even though the ruins have been somewhat stabilized from a further destruction, whenever there is high tide in the river, the waves are beating the remaining structures, which can cause even more unwanted damage, however, there is always a hope that everything will remain as it is and will continue to be the reminder to the future generations about the quite infamous past the Kunta Kinteh Island had.