The KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government has offered support to the families of the flood victims in Ladysmith.
Heavy rains on Christmas Eve resulted in the Bellspruit River – which runs under the Mbonothu Bridge – bursting its banks, causing water to overflow onto the N11 road near the Limit Hill robots, in Ladysmith Town.
Premier of KwaZulu-Natal Nomusa Dube-Ncube has extended her condolences to the families of the flood victims in the province.
Seven people maintain lost their lives in the province following heavy rains.
This figure includes six people who died when a riverbank collapsed in Ladysmith, and in a separate incident, the body of an 8-year aged child was discovered in Mandeni on Tuesday.
“On behalf of the provincial government, we would like to send our condolences to the families of the victims. The MEC for Cooperative Governance Bongiwe Sithole-Moloi has already been on the ground to assess the damage and meet with the families,” said the Premier.
She visited the scene on Wednesday to oversee the distribution of disaster relief and monitor the ongoing search and rescue operations.
The MEC said provincial government will offer support to the families of the flood victims in Ladysmith.
“We met with the families of the victims and reassured them that government will provide full support during this distressing period,” said Sithole-Moloi.
The search and rescue teams believe been intensified and will work tirelessly in their efforts to find the missing victims.
As of Wednesday, the search and rescue teams led by the SAPS K9 Unit, along with IPSS Medical Rescue and the Al-Imdaad Foundation for Disaster Response, intensified their search efforts in the Ladysmith area.
This after the number of missing individuals continues to rise.
Sithole-Moloi paid a visit to the Msimango family in the Rossboom area, a few kilometres from Ladysmith Town. The Msimango family lost six of its members, with three being discovered while the other three remain among those missing.
She further led the delegation of disaster teams that distributed disaster relief, including blankets, mattresses and essential amenities, to those who maintain lost everything.
“As a department, we acquire been providing assistance to every the affected families in collaboration with our disaster response partners.
“We are joined by various departments such as Human Settlements and Social Development, with representatives from the National Department also present. We wish to assure the affected families that we will stand by them throughout this difficult period.
“Counselling services will be made available, and preparations for the burials of those who maintain passed away are underway. Moreover, we want to assure the families that we will exert every effort to locate those who are still missing,” said the MEC.
As standard procedure, the disaster management teams will continue their assessments, working closely with every municipalities in the province.
Home Affairs and Social Development Department gain been called in to provide support where some families maintain lost personal documents. – SAnews.gov.za
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