Olalekan Adetayo and Godwin Isenyo

President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday directed the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, to lead a Federal Government delegation to Bauchi State in the aftermath of the windstorm and fire recorded in the state.

The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, disclosed this in a statement made available to journalists.

The windstorm was said to have destroyed 1,505 houses, mainly in the state capital, killing eight persons and injuring 120 others.

Azare, another major town, was struck by a major fire that destroyed the market in the town a few days after.

Shehu said the Federal Government delegation, which also includes the Director-General of the National Emergency Management Agency, Mustapha Maihaja, would undertake an assessment of the extent of damage occasioned by the natural disaster.

The statement read, “Already, NEMA has started mobilising relief items from its warehouses located in Damaturu and Yola for onward distribution to those displaced by the windstorm.

“The aid materials are expected to reach Bauchi Tuesday evening while an assessment is being conducted on the fire incident in Azare.”

In an earlier message on Monday, Buhari extended his deepest sympathies to the victims and families of the devastating windstorm and fire incidents.

The President said the “nation stands in solidarity with their fellow countrymen in this difficult time as they face the devastation with courage and fortitude.”

Meanwhile, the Arewa Consultative Forum on Tuesday sympathised with the government and people of Bauchi State over the rainstorm and fire disasters.

The National Publicity Secretary of the Forum, Alhaji Muhammad Ibrahim-Biu, in Kaduna, described the incident as “devastating” and offered prayers for the victims.

The ACF called on the Federal Government to, as a matter of urgency,  direct its humanitarian agency – the National Emergency Managment Agency – to render the necessary assistance to victims of the disaster.

It said, “The Arewa Consultative Forum is deeply touched by the unfortunate windstorm disaster in Bauchi and the fire incident in Azare market last week.

“The twin disasters, where lives and property were lost, were devastating. ACF sympathises with the victims of these natural disasters and prays to Almighty Allah to give them the strength and courage to endure what cannot be changed and to pick up their pieces and resume a normal life.”

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