King Charles III has written to President Muhammadu Buhari to express his heartfelt sympathy for the recent flooding in Nigeria, calling the events “devastating.”
“Your Excellency, Dear Mr President,” he began in the message. “I wanted you to know how deeply saddened both my wife and I are to hear of the many people who have lost their loved ones and whose lives have been so dreadfully affected as a consequence of the devastating floods across Nigeria.
“We remember with the greatest affection our visits to Nigeria and the kindness of the people we met.”
While reiterating the UK’s support to Nigeria, he said “however inadequate this may be under such tragic circumstances, our most heartfelt sympathy is with all those who have suffered so much, and our thoughts are with those working to support the recovery efforts.
“I know that the United Kingdom stands in solidarity with Nigeria as you recover from these truly terrible events.”
Already, over 600 persons have died in the recent floodings in Nigeria as of Sunday.
The disaster had also forced more than 1.3 million from their homes, said a statement by Nigeria’s ministry of humanitarian affairs, released on Twitter.
“Unfortunately, over 603 lives have been lost as of today October 16, 2022,” said Humanitarian Affairs Minister Sadiya Umar Farouq.
The previous toll from last week stood at 500, but the numbers had risen in part because some state governments had not prepared for the floods, said the minister.