Storm-hit residents of Endlovini informal settlement to be moved to shelters - Kubayi
Overnight, about 800 informal structures were destroyed, leaving hundreds of people without shelter.
A number of homes in the Endlovini informal settlement in Khayelitsha, in Cape Town were damaged when a storm hit the area on 11 July 2024. Picture: @The_DHS/X
CAPE TOWN - The National Minister of Human Settlements, Mmamoloko Kubayi, said that residents of the Endlovini informal settlement in Khayelitsha would be moved on Thursday.
This comes after the minister visited Khayelitsha on Thursday to assess the damage caused by the series of cold fronts that hit the Western Cape.
Overnight, about 800 informal structures were destroyed, leaving hundreds of people without shelter.
Nomzi Siyoka says her Ward Councillor, Lonwabo Mqina and the Gift of the Givers including local supermarkets have been helping out with food, toiletries, and other necessities. She however says children are getting sick because their clothes and blankets are wet. pic.twitter.com/cJN4NC1kvZ
— EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) July 11, 2024
One of the flooding victims of ENdlovini informal settlement, Bulelwa Lumkwana says all she wants is building material so she can rebuild her structure. pic.twitter.com/32ihJcXgC3
— EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) July 11, 2024
Minister Kubayi said that over 500 flood victims would be moved to community halls and schools in the area on Thursday.
The minister said that officials from her department would assist local disaster management teams to relocate those affected.
She said that responses to disaster-related incidents by municipalities had not been ideal over the years.
"The reason we took this responsibility from municipalities and provinces was because of performance. The fact that I’m here first, as a national minister, and the MMC himself has not been to ward 99, says a lot. You can’t issue statements in offices not interacting with communities, not interacting with the ground."
Kubayi added that there would be no devolution of disaster response funds to municipalities.
She said that her teams were capable of responding to all victims within the 24-hour turnaround time.