The Kimberley Prospector

Mopping-up operations are under way across Kimberley and surrounding areas following a Level 6 alert of heavy rain and flooding that caused extensive damage to property over the weekend.

MOPPING-UP operations are under way across Kimberley and surrounding areas following a Level 6 alert of heavy rain and flooding that caused extensive damage to property over the weekend.

Sol Plaatje Municipality confirmed that the storm caused flooding in Greenpoint, Roodepan, Club 2000 and Tlhageng.

This resulted in the temporary closure of the Greenpoint, Hull Street and Kenilworth subways as well as the Greenpoint and Tlhageng stormwater channels.

Informal settlements and homes close to the water channels were the worst affected by the flooding.

Residents of Lethabo Park said on Wednesday that they were still concerned that they could be trapped inside their yards if it rains again.

The roads are meanwhile too muddy to use, with several vehicles having already gotten stuck in the mud.

The owner of the Little Star Educare Centre, Ipeleng Buffel, said the crèche has started operating again, although it was a struggle to enter the property.

ALSO READ: Storm-hit residents begin mop-up

The centre was not operational on Monday due to the flooding and they had to carry the water out in buckets.

Buffel said the departments of Social Development and Education did inspections and offered help where they could.

In Floors, the owner of a shack that was blown away by the hailstorm had to move back to his mother’s house because he could not afford to rebuild his shack.

His neighbour, Charl Arthur, said the owner was not home when his shack was blown away.

“I was sitting in my shack during the hailstorm, praying that it would not be damaged. After the storm, I went outside to do an inspection, only to realise that there was no shack next door. I saw his furniture scattered all over the place, with his zinc plates stuck on a nearby brick wall,” Arthur said, adding that the roof of one section of his shacks also blew off.

He said that this was not the first time they had to mop up after a storm in the 13 years that they have been living in the settlement.

Another victim of the storm, 56-year-old Rasheeda Mohammed, could not observe Eid Mubarak after a tree collapsed on her shack during the storm. Her son and her partner were inside at the time of the incident.

“Following the incident, we were practically swimming in almost knee-high water, trying to carry it out,” she said.

“We have not had enough sleep since the incident but volunteers are helping us to save whatever we have left in the house, unbending the zinc sheets and removing the tree from the roof. Even the ward councillor, George Joseph, got his hands dirty by helping to cut the tree’s branches.

“We do not have food as everything was damaged, and I am concerned about the building material of the four rooms that were damaged during the storm.”

Municipal spokesperson Thabo Mothibi said various role-players were activated to assist affected residents, including Sassa, the Department of Social Development, Fire And Rescue services, councillors, and mayoral committee members.

Mothibi said no fatalities or injuries were reported except for a light vehicle that was left submerged under water.

“Both the driver and the passenger were rescued, while the vehicle was removed by the towing service,” said Mothibi.

“In Ward 29, White City Ivory Park, 14 families from Block A and B were relocated to Patricia Church.”

The Sol Plaatje Municipality’s Roads and Stormwater division embarked on cleaning the stormwater channel that leads from the Tlhageng Dam.

This is after several houses in Convection Street adjacent to the channel were flooded as a result of the spillover from the channel.

“Debris, building rubble and other foreign objects were removed from seven illegal dumping sites in the channel.

“While we will be closing the drift connecting to the channel and will construct a half-metre-high wall along it, we are appealing to residents to desist from illegal dumping.”

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