Cape Town - With heavy rains experienced in the Western Cape, homeless people around the metro have been confined to one place to stay warm. They are begging for donations of extra blankets and winter clothes.
Tasneem Pentolfe, a homeless single mother of a 5-year-old girl Taswan, said since the winter season began things had been a bit worse for her and her daughter. Pentolfe, who initially had a tent at the Cape Castle, has since moved to a “warmer” site.
“I had been staying on the streets long before I had my daughter. Between the evictions and cold weather, I am now forced to move around town looking for a warm space and to keep away from the visibility of Law Enforcement.
“In the past week, Law Enforcement came to where I originally had my tent by the Cape Castle and they threatened to take my daughter away if I don’t move from there.
“In panic I went around looking for a shelter to stay at, but currently there’s no space due to lots of people moving in winter.”
Laeeqah Benjamin, residing in District Six, said now it’s winter, they had to collect lots of building material to have protection from the rain.
“To keep warm during winter, some of us have decided to share our space with friends, just so we can have more than one mattress and blankets.
“Some make fire within the tents but that is risky because one mistake and the whole thing will burn down,” she said.
According to a report by the Central City Improvement District (CCID), homelessness is systemic across the Western Cape, with an estimated 14 000 people living on the streets in the greater Cape Town area, where there are only 3 500 shelter beds available.
The homeless population in the city centre could be as large as 5 000 individuals, with only about 1 500 shelter beds, with more capacity created during the cold winter months.
CCID social development manager, Tara Gerardy, said the homeless were more at risk of being exposed to the elements in winter and there was a greater need for shelter because of it.