Cape Town - At least 41 informal settlements have been flooded in recent rains in Cape Town, affecting 2 246 residents.
As mop-up operations begin, the City of Cape Town said all its departments remained on high alert.
Disaster Risk Management spokesperson Charlotte Powell said they continued co-ordinating responses and assessments of weather-related impacts.
“Based on information flowing through to our Disaster Operations Centre, the situation in Cape Town has not changed.
“The City continues to provide assistance in areas where flooding has been reported and, to date, disaster management officers have made assessments in 41 informal settlements where 1 221 structures were flooded and 2246 persons were affected,” she said.
Powell said the worst-affected areas included Khayelitsha, Strand, Gugulethu, Sir Lowry’s Pass Village, Hout Bay, Wallacedene, Vygieskraal and Bloekombos.
Humanitarian relief was being provided to affected residents by the Gift of the Givers, the Mustadafin Foundations, and the Ashraful Foundation.
The roads and stormwater departments have been issuing milling and sandbags on request to residents in certain areas.
A number of roadways have also been flooded.
“Various roadways are flooded across the city and the roads and stormwater department is assisting with the unblocking of drains and clearing roadways,” Powell said.
The electricity department is attending to weather-related power outages in several areas.
In the event of an emergency or any incident where life or property is at risk, residents are urged to call the City’s Public Emergency Communication Centre at 0214807700 from a cellphone.
In Bloekombos, community activist Lindo Pito expressed concern about the impact of the flooding of homes on residents.
“People who reside in Covid and the informal settlement in ward 101 in Kraaifontein are facing severe challenges due to the wetland dam flooding their homes.
“We are appealing to the government to develop a long-term plan to prevent such flooding from happening again in the future,” Pito said.
In the Social Distance informal settlement in Kraaifontein, ward councillor Siya Duka highlighted the dire conditions faced by the residents.
“People built houses near a dam in Social Distance, and now, due to the weather, the dam is overflowing, causing flooding in the area.
“Water is entering the shacks, and residents are struggling to clear it by creating channels to divert the flow away from their homes,” Duka said.