About 15 persons have reportedly died, while more than 200 buildings are said to be at risk of collapse as a result of extensive sand mining activities in Umundimisii Quarters Umuoru Uga, Aguata Local Government Area of Anambra State.
The sand mining business has continued to worsen gully erosion in the community, which is already known to be one of the erosion-devastated areas of the state.
More worrisome is the alleged destruction of three newly constructed roads in the area by heavy-duty trucks that frequently visit the mining sites to evacuate sand, a development residents said was threatening road infrastructure in the community.
Recall that the Anambra State Government, through the Commissioner for Environment, Dr Clem Aguiyi, had banned sand excavation in some parts of the state, particularly in Aguata, Orumba North and Orumba South Local Government Areas.
The government also established a task force to monitor sand mining activities in the affected communities, warning that it would not tolerate activities capable of worsening environmental degradation. The government had also lamented that the landmass of Anambra State was shrinking daily due to the menace of gully erosion.
However, residents of Umundimisii Quarters Umuoru Uga Community in Aguata Local Government Area alleged that some youths had been engaged by sand miners to create insecurity in parts of the community, thereby causing division within the Town Union Youth Association.
When reporters visited Umudimishi Quarters, Umuoru Village in Uga, residents protested and appealed to Governor Charles Soludo to visit the area on a fact-finding mission and take urgent steps to halt the activities of the sand miners.
Speaking, the Chairman of Umudimishi Village, Uga, Nze Jude Ibeabuchukwu Ugochukwu, said the community had battled gully erosion for decades.
He said, “We have been victims of gully erosion. Since I was born, I grew up to see gully erosion in my town.
“We have about five gully erosion sites in my area, including one that came from our neighbouring town, Umueze, another one in our town and others in different locations.
“We have been witnessing gully erosion for over 37 years now, but successive governments and the villagers have been working on the gullies.”
Ugochukwu lamented that the effect of sand mining had also discouraged some youths from engaging in legitimate businesses and trades.
“Every morning, they visit the mining sites because of the pittance they get from there, and they don’t want to be useful to themselves.
“The mining has gotten to residential areas where people are living, such as Umudimishi and Agbakuwa villages.”
“So far, about 200 buildings are now at risk of gully erosion, and before the end of this year, or within the next five months, at least 70 houses could be destroyed by gully erosion caused by sand mining activities in our town,” he said.
He maintained that the land belonged to the town and alleged that the community did not authorise anyone to carry out sand mining in the area.
According to him, the initial miners, known as Morning Star, used to excavate sand manually before the introduction of excavators.
“Today, the excavators pay N3000 per load and some money to the youths of our community,” he alleged.
The Community Leader lamented that there is one self acclaimed Miner, who claimed that it is Government that gave him license to mine those sands and he collects between N25,000.00 and N30,000.00 naira pay trip while the community roads are in a sorry state. He makes money while the community is in serious pains.
The community leader further lamented that the sand mining activities had damaged roads constructed by the Soludo administration, alleging that the heavy trucks conveying sand had weakened the newly constructed roads.
They don’t want to learn any trade. All they do is go to the beach site to mine sand.
“Some of our youths have formed a parallel youth organisation against the official youth organisation.
“They call themselves Ekwere-Kwesike. They pay them N1,000 for each tipper load, which they share every day,” he alleged.
Agbara said the mining activities had claimed the lives of several youths in the community, particularly when mining pits collapsed.
“This beach-site business has killed a lot of youths in the town because sometimes the sites collapse while the youths are working there.
We have had about seven youths die on the site. Sometime ago, it killed four other people at the same time.
“Also, there was an incident where some gunmen stormed the site and opened fire on the people working there and killed about three of them.
“The total number of deaths is about 15. That is why we are calling on the government to come and help us. We are ready to take the government to the affected areas,” he lamented.
The residents urged the state government to urgently investigate the allegations, assess the extent of environmental degradation and take steps to protect lives, homes and road infrastructure in the affected parts of Umuoru Village Uga Community. They are calling on the state government to call the so called miner by the name Ndubuisi motors to order.
