By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
President Cyril Ramaphosa made a brief visit to flood stricken Port St John’s in the Eastern Cape, late on Tuesday and said government would begin the process of sheltering the flood victims.
The OR Tambo District Municipality in the Eastern Cape was affected by torrential rainfall over the past week which caused flooding resulting in loss of life, displacement of communities and damage to infrastructure.
Severe weather which the South African Weather Service had issued early warnings on 22 and 23 March, affected communities in Port St Johns, Ingquza Hill, Nyandeni and King Sabata Dalindyebo Local Municipalities.
Ramaphosa said government was doing everything in its power to assist all those affected.
“Government is doing everything in its power to restore all the roads damaged by the floods and to ensure that our people have shelter, “Ramaphosa said.
Ramaphosa said the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) will assist in rebuilding the damaged bridges.
“What happened here affects all of us. As government we are going to ensure that our people get the necessary help they need. We want investors to help us with the building of a Smart City here, “Ramaphosa said.
The President’s visit began with a welcoming by senior provincial government officials, after which he was briefed about the situation in the area.
From there, the President conducted a walk about to assess damage on the R61 road which links Mthata and Port St Johns which was severely damaged by the floods.
Whilst there, Ramaphosa also met with SANRAL officials who briefed him on the damage.
According to the officials, the work to repair the road will start soon.
At the Port St John’s Youth Centre, the President assured residents that various government departments are working together to restore the lives of people affected by the floods.
“Our government is taking care of our people by building shelters and ensuring that they have food. Government is gearing into action to assist the affected communities, “Ramaphosa said.
Government has activated a Special Intergovernmental Committee on Disaster Management to provide support and relief to the affected communities.
Teams comprising national, provincial and local spheres of government have been assessing the damage and providing emergency support in the form of shelter, food, blankets and other essentials.