By Nardos Yoseph
The sitting adminstration never knew of a multi-million Br project initiative to prevent the potential floods
An outflow of sewerage pipeline has displaced close to 300 people from their homes, while businesses and residences in the area have so far claimed a total of 40 million Br in damages. The outflow came following a heavy rain storm on the night of Monday, July 4. 2016. The area is one of those identified by the National Disaster Risk Management Commission as flood prone following the rainy season.
Adama Mekonen, a decade-old popular hotel in Adama - previously rented out to Yami Hotel for three years before being renovated - has faced the heavy hand of the flood.
The hotel was using the ground floor as a storage for fridges, chairs, tables, desktop computers and other new materials bought for renovating the hotel. The management of claim that they have lost over 60,000Br of property, which they haven't yet completed registering. The staff also claim that this kind of flood is unprecedented at the hotel and throughout Adama
Another Bar and Restaurant Beer Court, which has a club, VIP areas and outside kitchen area has also been damaged by the torrent. According to its owner and manager, Amanuel Fekadu, it has lost 1.5 million Br as a result of damage caused by the flood.
"It will take me at least two months to renovate," Amanuel Fikadu said. "With each day passing without my average 30,000Br in daily sales."
A third round water sucking truck was on its way to drain the water.
Beer court has been in business for eight years, starting out with 2.5 million Br in capital. The nightclub has moved into a six-storey building in Wereda 09, raising its total capital to four million, with 43 staff employed. However, Amanuel now has to try to find a way to survive this on his own, since it has no insurance to cover the damage.
The residents who live around the sewerage state that the line has not been cleaned for the past five years, but the city cleaning and beautification office argues otherwise. A source in the office states that all of the city sewerage has been cleaned, as a 21-day time lapse to clean all pipelines is mandatory. According to this same source, two months have passed since the last cleaning.
"They only cleaned it three days after the flood, not before the disaster," said a resident who lives nearby.
According to an experienced lawyer, since the victims of the flood had approached the administration to clean the sewerage, but still the management had failed to answer their demand, they could sue the administration.
The people can ask for evidence and register for property damage compensation. If anyone has died, the survivor family can sue for compensation to provide the average earning of the deceased one. The surviving community can also sue the management of the administration for failing to carry out their responsibilities.
Adama, as the prime economic hub of the Oromia Regional State, with an estimated 350,000 residents, has a daily waste water production close to 34,000m3. The waste management less than 0.1 percent compared to the demand for the service.
In 2011, the city administration, in collaboration with the Oromoia Regional State and the World Bank, announced a 234 million project to construct of 45km flood drainage system in Adama Town. The drainage and bridge construction was then planned to end annual and often fatal floods.
Officials pointed fingers at one another, while admitting that priority was not given to the persistent requests of the residents.
The sitting Mayor of Adama for this year claims that there is no such project in his office
"We had no such kind of project," said the city mayor. "We did a quick research after this flood and are working to ensure it never happens again."
The three companies that were awarded the contract, Yemane Tesfaye Building Co, Sesk Construction Co and Anwar Seid General Contractor, told Fortune that they have finished constructing 45km of flood drainage system in the town during the same fiscal year that they took over the project.
Five Years back, Dita Kure, head of the City Administration Construction office, told Fortune that 25km of the project was targeted to be completed in 2011, aiming to minimise the flood danger and damage in the area by 60pc. Read more here
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