By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
President Cyril Ramaphosa will on Thursday 16 May, visit the George disaster site, following the fatal collapse of the partially built residential building.
According to George Municipality, rescue and recovery efforts are nearing the end of day eight (8) following the incident at 75 Victoria Street.
Rescue workers and other role-players have been on site of the collapsed building for 214 hours.
The confirmed statistics for the incident are:
• Total estimated individuals on-site when the incident occurred: 81
• Rescued and recovered: 62
• Of which deceased: 33 (27 males, 6 females)
• Currently hospitalised: 12
• Unaccounted for: 19
Ramaphosa remains deeply attentive to the rescue and recovery efforts under way and has expressed his deep condolences to the family and friends of the deceased workers,” the Presidency said.
Ahead of Ramaphosa’s visit on Thursday, ministers and deputy ministers in the departments of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Employment and Labour, Health, Police, International Relations and Co-operation, and Public Works and Infrastructure have visited the site.
The visit of the president to the disaster site will proceed with a visit to the Disaster JOC at 10.30am at the Eden Disaster Operations Centre.
At around midday Ramaphosa is expected to visit the disaster site and meet with the affected families.
According to the statement from the Garden Route District Joint Operations Committee (JOC) and George Municipality, only 47 victims have been linked to their families.
The identification of the deceased is the joint responsibility of SAPS and the Western Cape Department of Health and Wellness FPS (which also manages the visual identification in support of SAPS).
“After an incident such as this, visual identification can understandably be difficult and traumatic for family members and requires SAPS to undertake identification through scientific means, of which DNA testing is one method.
“We urge the media and public to please respect the families of the deceased while we facilitate the identification process with SAPS,” they said.
The Garden Route District JOC’s adherence to a stringent double verification protocol is crucial for maintaining the integrity and accuracy of reported numbers of the deceased, which is essential in emergency and disaster response scenarios.
“This verification process involves cross-referencing information from multiple reliable sources, such as recovery teams, hospitals, and forensic services.”
Since the fatal incident on Monday, May 6, the government and its disaster management agencies have mobilised personnel and resources towards the rescue efforts and provided support to the survivors and families of the deceased.