Africa-Press – South-Africa. Johannesburg Mayor Mpho Phalatse has submitted a report to the provincial and national government to declare parts of flood-stricken Johannesburg a disaster.
Addressing the media in Soweto, Phalatse gave an update on the work being done by the City, in response to the flooding.
The severe storms earlier this month caused extensive damage to the City’s infrastructure including roads, bridges, and electricity substations.
“Twenty-three people have been rescued by Joburg EMS, 148 people have been rescued by SAPS Search and Rescue, approximately 213 formal households have been damaged, 61 informal settlement dwellings have been damaged and 16 people have tragically lost their lives, including an off-duty SAPS member, Warrant Officer Ntsako Pataka,” the Mayor said.
The mayor highlighted the tragic death of 15 people who lost their lives during an alleged religious ceremony at the Jukskei River.
“As we stand today, the remains of a three-month-old baby have still not been recovered. Subsequent days of rainfall have put pressure on already damaged infrastructure and continues to affect the lives and livelihoods of the residents of Joburg,” she stressed.
Phalatse, said the damage caused to the city’s infrastructure currently stands at R300 million, and she expects this figure to rise.
“The current damage to state infrastructure sits at approximately R300 million (R292,419,903); and we expect this figure to increase, as some areas are still under water or inaccessible, therefore making it impossible to conduct an accurate and a final assessment.”
A breakdown of the figures currently, is as follows:
“It is in this context that I signed off on a report from the City’s Disaster Management Centre, which has been submitted to the Provincial and National Disaster Management Centres, stating our intention to declare a local state of disaster,” Phalatse added.
Phalatse said that the city requires concurrence from provincial and national level in order to declare a state of disaster.
“We, therefore, trust that the detailed report submitted to the relevant authorities, will accelerate the declaration of a local state of disaster. The declaration of a local state of disaster enables us, where necessary to access resources from the provincial and national spheres of government and accelerate supply chain management processes.”
“We do not want a repeat of a feverish scramble for contracts like we saw during the early Covid-19 years; therefore, the city’s Group Risk and Assurance Services will keep a focused eye on procurement. The multi-party government will not allow the corrupt to sacrifice lives and livelihoods for self-enrichment,” she warned.
Phalatse said she had met with Chief Director of Disaster Management in the Western Cape Colin Deiner, who holds a wealth of local and global experience in dealing with disasters, to inspect the province’s Disaster Management Centre in Cape Town.
“Having toured the facility and gained insight into best practice when dealing with a disaster, work is already underway to enter into a partnership with the Western Cape Provincial Government,” the mayor added.
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