Flood Associated Bacteriological Status of a Water Body in a Rural Niger Delta Community, Delta State, Nigeria

Floods are high volumes of water over areas that are normally dry land, and are among the most frequent and costly natural disasters. The aim of this work was to evaluate the impact of flooding on the bacteriological quality of a water body in a rural Niger Delta Community in Delta State, Nigeria. Water samples were collected from three different points such as the Right Bank, Left Bank and Mid-Point of the river at a monthly interval, from October (the peak of the flood) to December 2019, when the flood has finally receded. The samples were analyzed for the diverse bacterial groups using standard bacteriological methods. The highest total heterotrophic bacterial counts of 5.6±0.1 x 106 CFU/ml and the highest total coliform counts of 1.6±0.3 x 104 CFU/ml were recorded in the month of October, while the least total heterotrophic bacterial counts of 1.2±0.1 x 105 CFU/ml and the total coliform counts of 1.0±0.2 x 103 CFU/ml were recorded in the month of December. Six (6) bacterial species, belonging to four (4) genera were purified and identified as Bacillus spp., Staphylococcus spp., Klebsiella spp. and Escherichia coli. Bacillus species (B. cereus; B. lentus; B. subtilis) were the most predominant bacterial species, with a percentage occurrence of 37.5%. Staphylococcus spp. and Klebsiella spp. were at par in their occurrence of 25% each, while Escherichia coli was on the other hand the least occurring bacterial species (12.5%). The results hence, showed that the bacterial population differed with regards to the sample period, as the highest counts were obtained in the month of October when the flood was at its peak and decreased as the flood receded. Therefore, flooding increases the risk of bacterial mediated waterborne infections in impacted localities. It is therefore recommended that those living within vicinities affected by the flood should vacate the environment to avoid unnecessary associated risk.