Africa-Press – South-Africa. NPO Meals on Wheels Community Services has hit the ground running and provided relief to KwaZulu-Natal communities affected by heavy rains that destroyed infrastructure, including homes.
The organisation’s chief executive officer, Nelisa Mabenge, told News24 it started handing out food early on Tuesday morning and would be providing hot meals across the province for as long as the need was there.
“What is happening in the province is unfortunate and has misplaced many families and put them in a very vulnerable situation.
“We are making it our mission to see that the many people placed into safe shelters and environments are attended to by receiving a decent warm, cooked meal,” said Mabenge.
The organisation added it encouraged people not to move around as the roads were dangerous.
ROLLING COVERAGE |
KZN hit by serious flooding
“We understand that a lot of residents do not have the time or transportation to get food supplies because of the situations they may be finding themselves in. We’ve thus decided to bring the food to the people in the community,” said Mabenge.
She added the NPO prided itself in providing meals to the needy, as it believed hunger was the extreme materialisation of poverty and human deprivation.
According to the organisation, it was in constant contact with community leaders, local government, and their partners to respond to the crises to see which areas have been heavily impacted.
“Food must be the least of things that the residents worry about, especially at this time. As an organisation, we are committed to providing a meal and any other form of support during this time to assist the residents affected by the KZN floods,” said Mabenge.
Meals on Wheels will be providing cooked meals to all the camps where displaced residents are currently sheltered.
This followed devastating floods that wreaked havoc in different parts of KZN, especially the coastal belt that includes the eThekwini Municipality and Ilembe District as well as parts of the uMgungundlovu and Ugu districts.
Durban teams ‘overwhelmed’ by number of emergency calls
Mabenge said the food stock the organisations had available was determined by the people’s needs.
“We are making sure that we mobilise on the ground. Our KZN team provides updated stats on how many meals we need to give out. We are monitoring the situation on an hourly basis to make sure that we do not run out of food during this crisis.
“We will further assess the situation and the damages thereof to provide more assistance to the affected communities. The organisation is further inviting strategic partners and donors to join efforts in responding more effectively to this disaster as some areas are not accessible,” she added.
The eThekwini Municipality has made a list of community halls available to accommodate those impacted by the floods.
Residents can collect food supplies at the following locations:
Six drop-off points have also been made available for people to donate canned foods, blankets and water at:
For More News And Analysis About South-Africa Follow Africa-Press
