Ripples of Hurricane Sandy may hit Lagos – Commissioner

The Lagos state government has raised concerns over the imminent ripple effect of the Hurricane Sandy that hit the United States of America and the Caribbean.

At a press conference in Lagos on Tuesday, the Commissioner for Waterfront and Infrastructure Development, Segun Oniru said experience has shown that whenever hurricane, cyclone or other natural disasters occurred on the American shore, the ripple effects were always felt in Lagos within seven and 14 days period.

“Let Lagosians know what is going on, and what to expect, it is not to create panic; they should be careful around the Ocean and Lagoon. In the last five to six days, around the Caribbean, from Jamaica, Haiti, Cuba Hurricane Sandy has hit those places and has also hit the East Coast of America.

“Normally, when such happens, and when those kinds of magnitude hit that part of the world, we always have a ripple effect in Lagos and around the West Coast of Africa. Our main concern is Lagos; it is a warning, but not to create panic,” he said.

The Commissioner further said that “Lagos lies parallel to the South America part of the world on the map, but super storm Sandy has hit New York City and Atlantic and the West Part.

“That part of the world is northern to us, but we need to note that within the next seven to 14 days, we may get a ripple effect.

“When the wind starts, the wind turns to a hurricane and then high water level begins to rise because of the wind; imagine throwing water on a glass, it will splash back, so we may have high wave, high water level.

“I advise those who live around the coastline and shoreline to be vigilant and remain calm and if they start seeing storms like the one that occurred on 17 of August this year, they should stay off the Atlantic. It’s a warning to those on the Coastline.”