Following the deadly floods that destroyed lives and livelihoods in South Africa’s eastern KwaZulu-Natal province, the country’s President, Cyril Ramaphosa this week, declared a state of disaster.
This is even as the country’s defence force announced that it was deploying 10,000 troops to help clear debris, rebuild fallen bridges, provide clean water and reconnect severed power lines.
According to reports, record floods in South Africa left more than 440 people dead, an estimated 40,000 people homeless and damaged critical infrastructure and hundreds of schools.
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However, the declaration by Ramaphosa is expected to speed up the much-needed aid to the flood-hit area in a crisis that comes just two weeks after South Africa lifted its disaster declaration for the coronavirus pandemic.
Reports show that the national government will direct a whopping $68 million to clean up what officials have called catastrophic flooding that has left thousands of people homeless, without water and electricity.
While the city of Durban and the surrounding province of KwaZulu-Natal is reported to have been the worst hit by the floods, other provinces like the Eastern Cape also saw flooding and deaths.
Officials say they are still measuring the damage to critical infrastructures like the Durban Port, highways and telecommunications.
The minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, who is leading the response, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, was quoted as saying that the scale of the disaster requires a national response.
“In a way, it gives hope and also is a vessel for coordination and rallying the entire nation, the entire government and also the international support,” Dlamini-Zuma said.
Story was adapted from VOA News.
