The National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) has served notice to people living in flood-prone areas to be prepared as the rains set in.

According to NADMO, it cannot predict the nature of rain patterns would be this year, therefore, the public needs to take precaution by moving to the safer grounds before the peak of the rains.

Speaking to the media at a Dissemination of the Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) Project Endline and Assessment Report organised by the Ghana Red Cross Society, the North East Regional Director of NADMO called for an attitudinal change and the need for people to adhere to the early warning signs when signals are sent.

At the event that happened in Tamale, Alhassan John Kweku said because of the huge impact of last year's flood, including, collapse of houses, destruction of farmlands, loss of lives and animals, NADMO has put in place measures to avert possible flood disasters in the affected regions.

He mentioned community sensitization, flood management practices, working tools, provision of information among others are some measures put in place to enable to guard against flood this year.

“We know that last year flood was as a result of torrential rains couple with the spillage of Bagre dam in Burkina Faso. But, this year we don’t know what will happen. With just few heavy, rains some part of the regions have started bearing the brunt, and so we have to always be prepared in advance so that in case any disaster strike we don’t have ourselves to be blamed” Mr. Kweku said.

He added that NADMO in collaboration with Ghana Red Cross Society and other organizations have also started capacity building programs in communities dotted along the flood-prone areas such as Northern, Savannah, North East and Upper East Regions to be able to respond to disaster issues when it occurred.

“When there is a disaster the people who suffer are the communities and so we have started the awareness campaigns, skills training, provision of the necessary working tools, asking people not to build on waterways, desilting of gutters among others,” he stated.

The Country Coordinator of Swiss Red Cross Ghana Delegation Thomas Okollah on his part said a lot of work has been done in reaching out to communities, building resilient capacities and setting up structures to ensure that lives are not lost.

He said communities are the core of their activities and therefore the Red Cross will continue to partner NADMO and other disaster organizations to make sure standard structures are put in place to tackle the challenge.