Photo by Robert McKenzie
The province of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) is still reeling after it was ravaged by fire disasters which left a trail of destruction and also claimed lives over the weekend.
This morning a high powered government delegation comprised of the MEC’s for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta), Nomusa Dube-Ncube under whose portfolio disaster management falls as well as the MEC for Agriculture and Rural Development, Cyril Xaba, visited the affected communities and led the distribution of much needed humanitarian relief to the victims of the recent fire disasters.
A significant number of people have been left homeless after their houses were razed to the ground by veld fires which further caused massive damage to livestock, infrastructure and property.
“Today after conducting the detailed assessment on the impact we can confirm that there were 200 households which were affected across the province and a total of six people lost their lives (four in Kokstad and two in AbaQulusi/Vryheid Municipality), a total of six people were injured,” said KZN Cogta MEC Nomusa Dube-Ncube.
“As is the norm, in the wake of these fires, the Joint Organising Committee was activated and disaster teams worked tirelessly to assist the victims. At this stage the cost impact of the overall disaster incidents cannot be confirmed as more detailed assessments are still being conducted to include the impact on the agricultural sector. At this stage there is no consideration for declaring the affected areas as disaster areas,” said MEC Nomusa Dube-Ncube
On behalf of the Premier and the Provincial Government, MEC Dube-Ncube, expressed condolences to the bereaved and affected families and assured them that government is working around the clock to give them all the necessary support in order to mitigate the impact and the untold suffering they are going through.
She assured residents that all provincial departments are providing a coordinated response and immediately communities will be issued with ID’s, Birth Certificates, Sassa and Home Affairs are on board, while Human Settlements will respond on houses.
Agriculture and Rural Development MEC Cyril Xaba, expressed sympathy with the farmers and describe the incidents as a “setback to rural development as more money will be needed to rebuild the destroyed infrastructure”. He vowed to support the farmers with emergency feed until all processes have been concluded.
MEC Dube-Ncube further warned that the province is still experiencing high levels of humidity and strong winds and remains on the high risk of exposure to veld fires.
Dube-Ncube further calls on members of the community within the province to remain on full alert as the fire index remains on an extremely dangerous zone.
“The families that have been affected by the fires are currently receiving assistance and disaster relief kits have been dispatched to the families. Households have also been evacuated in areas where there is a possibility that the fire could cause further damage.
The priority at this stage is to contain the fire and where possible rescue people. Once we move to a “green zone” in terms of the fire index, we will then embark on a programme to take stock of the damage.