How Lagos rains impacted telecoms service
Jonah Iboma
How Lagos rains
impacted telecoms service
Jonah Iboma
Telecoms infrastructure was among the worst hit following
the first rainfall in 2012 in Lagos. Telecoms masts and towers belonging to Internet
service Providers (ISPs) and other operators were badly damaged in the rainfall
that resulted in loss of lives as well.
The February rain was unusual in the tropic zone which is
one that is characterised by intense sunshine and heavy rains at different
times of the year. Many African countries, especially those in the western part
of the continent including Nigeria, fall into this zone.
The weather pattern is such that the tropics have two major
seasons -rainy season and dry season. The rainy season, as rightly named, has a
lot of rainfall, while the dry season has a lot of dry air, although night
temperatures fall significantly during this period.
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| A car damaged by a mast |
Nigeria, like many West African countries, witnesses a transition from the dry season to the rainy, wet season around the months of March and April. This transition is not cast in stone as the southern parts of the country experiences the transition before the northern parts.
For this year 2012, Lagos, Nigeria’s economic capital located on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, has already started witnessing the transition following a heavy rainfall in some parts of the state on Wednesday, February 15th.
Speaking on the impact of the rain on telecom services, Mr. David Awanebi, Chief Executive Officer, Yievoip Telecoms, said the rains damaged his company’s mast at Ijesha.
“The rains of February 15thwas a very severe one as it left many of our company’s facilities damaged. Our mast that services our clients was pulled down despite the reinforcement that we have given to it,” he said.
Besides telecom services, the impact of the rainfall was quite serious as it resulted in loss of lives and property. Mr. Udoka Oguamanam, a resident of Yaba, said the rooftop of his house was blown away by the violent wind. According to him, he was preparing to go to work when the rains started and a very telling mark the short period that it lasted.
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| A person killed by a telecom mast |
“On Monday, I just woke up to prepare for work when the weather became dark and within a short time we had very heavy winds. A few moments late the winds started carrying things all around and suddenly the rooftop of my house just gave way and water started entering our house,” he said.
Oguamanam said for about a week, the rainfall has left him homeless and he has had to put up with friends. It was also in the same vicinity where Oguamanam lives that a telecom mast fell down on a school teacher on his way to the office and killed him in the process.
Speaking on the development, the Nigeria metrological service explained that the violent rainfall was the beginning of the transition from the dry to the rainy season to dry season.
Following the loss of lives and property, especially by the telecom masts, the Lagos State Government has asked operators and owners of masts and towers to submit report on a regularly basis to on the integrity of such equipment regularly to forestall such occurrences in the future.
Meanwhile, leading telecommunication firms have assured that there masts were safe and have not been part of those that were affected during the downpour. MTN Nigeria in particular said none of its masts fell during the downpour.
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