Shelters Damaged by More Rains in South Africa

[newspostng]

BOOK INTERNATIONAL FLIGHTS TICKETS LOCAL FLIGHTS HOTELS BOOKINGS WORLDWIDE AND MORE AT CHEAPEST RATE EVER! CLICK HERE TO BOOK YOUR FLIGHT AND RECEIVE YOUR FLIGHT TICKET INSTANTLY

Loading...

 
Flood victims in South Africa's port city of Durban had yet to recover from last month’s historic rain when another storm hit this weekend. Victims and experts say it is a signal that better urban planning is needed to protect residents and their livelihoods from future extreme weather.

It has been over a month since historic floods in South Africa’s eastern province of KwaZulu-Natal made nearly 7,000 people homeless.

But their numbers are growing as heavy rains and repeat floods hit the port city of Durban last weekend, destroying more homes, and damaging temporary shelters.

Emily Hector is a community leader in the Durban township of Umlazi and is supporting a shelter in a community hall.

“It's not getting better. It's getting worse," she said. "… So if it happens for the rain to come back again. So that means we won't have a shelter to accommodate other people because the people, the halls right now, it's overloaded.”

KwaZulu-Natal officials say at least 250 people were evacuated from shelters.

South African federal authorities earmarked $63 million for clean-up and rebuilding while funds are also coming from various levels of government and aid groups.

But victims say they haven’t been told when they will get to move to longer-term housing.

28-year-old flood victim Masbonge Dlamini lived in an informal settlement in Umlazi.

“We don't have another space. If we do, we will try by all means to escape for all escape, escape to that place directly," Dlamini said. "We will not going to go to a hall whereby you will sleep with many people as far as we are here with, because it’s because we don't have a choice. We don't have another places.”