Humanitarian organisation Gift of the Givers is working around the clock to provide relief to flood-stricken residents around Cape Town.
Supplied/Gift of the Givers
More than 3 000 people have been displaced following heavy flooding in Cape Town.Informal settlements are among the hardest hit.Although the torrential rains have subsided,cold and damp conditions will persist across the province.
Almost 4 000 people have been left homeless after heavy flooding in Cape Town,with informal settlements among the hardest hit.
Torrential rain battered large parts of the city,damaging homes,cutting off access roads,and forcing families to seek shelter elsewhere.
According to the Western Cape Provincial Disaster Management Centre (PDMC),more than 3 700 residents have been affected in Vygieskraal and surrounding areas,with flooding hitting areas including Gugulethu,Mfuleni,Khayelitsha,Du Noon and Athlone.
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On Sunday,the City of Cape Town’s Disaster Management Centre (DMC) said that 67 homes at the Intertersite and Sanitizer informal settlements in Langa had been affected,impacting 240 people.
In Masincedane,20 dwellings have been hard hit by the rain,affecting 80 people and in Kampies,Strandfontein,officials counted 50 impacted dwellings,displacing 150 people.
READ | More than 2 000 displaced,canal bank bursts,power outages as parts of Cape Town flooded
“The City’s Informal Settlements Management branch has been activated to provide assistance to affected residents – we have also alerted the National Human Settlements Department to conduct assessments,” City DMC spokesperson Charlotte Powell said.
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She added that the City’s NGO partners would provide humanitarian relief,while the roads and infrastructure management department has been requested to provide sand and milling.
“DRM will continue to conduct assessments in informal settlements situated in low-lying areas,while the Catchment,Stormwater and River Management branch is monitoring waterways (rivers and canals).”
“While the worst of the rainfall is behind us,the cold and damp conditions will persist. The City has availed seven drop-off sites for donations of non-perishable foodstuffs.”
Humanitarian relief organisation Gift of the Givers said they have assisted more than 35 000 people since the cold front hit parts of the province.
Humanitarian organisation Gift of the Givers is working around the clock to assist Cape Town residents affected by the floods and extreme weather.
Supplied/Gift of the Givers
Humanitarian organisation Gift of the Givers is working around the clock to assist Cape Town residents affected by the floods and extreme weather.
Supplied/Gift of the Givers
“The Gift of the Givers team distributed in excess of 10 000 meals yesterday (Saturday),blankets,beanies,and other personal hygienic personal packs. Our teams distributed in Nyanga,Langa,Nomzamo,[and] Lwandle,” said Gift of the Givers spokesperson Ali Sablay.
Western Cape Department of Infrastructure MEC Tertuis Simmers has urged road users to travel cautiously during rainy weather,as visibility is impaired and roads can become slippery.
“Please stay clear of flooded roads and use alternative routes,” he cautioned.
The following road closures are active:
Cape Winelands District
DR1341 (Die Plaat),Bonnievale,Km 0.99-1.10: Road temporarily closed.DR1397 (Merwe Street): Drift over Breede River at km 7.9: Road closed.DR1398 (Slanghoek Road): Low water structure over Breede River: Road closed.
West Coast District
OP7623 (Bergrivier Municipality),Uitvlug: Road closed.MR539 Low water bridge,N7 to Algeria: Road closed.DRI 176 Matjiesrivier: Road closed to traffic.MR174 between Malmesbury and Klipheuwel: Road closed.MR215 between Darling and R27 (Yzerfontein): Road closed.
Overberg District
DR1257 (Solitaire Road) between Tesselaarsdal and Hemel en Aarde: Road closed to traffic.DR1276 (Dassiesfontein Road) between N2 and Caledon (back road): Road closed to traffic.
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