Flood warnings had been ringing out across Nigeria’s north-east for weeks. Schools in Maiduguri were closed for a fortnight as the torrential rains came. The reservoir of the Alau Dam began to overflow;

Borno state Governor Babagana Zulum described the extent of the damage as "beyond human imagination". This is the first time that the Nigerian authorities have admitted to the numbers who fled custody.

Nigerian authorities say 281 inmates escaped after devastating floods brought down a prison’s walls in the country’s northeast.

Authorities in Nigeria have said 281 inmates escaped after devastating floods brought down a prison’s walls in the country's northeast. A major dam collapsed on September 10, unleashing severe flooding that left 30 people dead and over a million displaced,