/ 9 July 2012

Cape Town ramps up flood relief efforts

Cape Town has had to step up its efforts to help flood victims in the city after the weekend.
Cape Town has had to step up its efforts to help flood victims in the city after the weekend.

Disaster response teams have assisted 2 566 people in the flood-stricken areas with social relief such as hot meals, food parcels, clothing, blankets, and plastic sheeting, Wilfred Solomons-Johannes said in a statement on Sunday night.

He said between Friday and Sunday evening the city attended to 348 calls where roads, property and informal areas needed attention, of which 321 were dealt with. The remaining of 27 incidents will be dealt with on Monday.

"The city also attended to 839 instances of drains that were blocked and sewer systems that were overflowing since Friday. The strong winds also affected various trees across Cape Town and the city parks department had to deal with 38 incidents where trees were required to be removed, trimmed and/or pruned."

He said the city's electricity services dealt with 1 545 calls.

Earlier on Sunday about 60 people were evacuated from a golf and conference centre because of rising water levels.

Flooding is commonplace in the Western Cape, with floods ravaging the city of Cape Town and its outlying areas almost every year.

Solomons-Johannes said emergency services evacuated people from the River Club in Observatory because the Liesbeek River was rising following heavy rain at the weekend.

Safety
The river flooded the club's courtyard, with no significant damage to any buildings. Fifteen vehicles had to be moved to higher ground.

"Residents are urged to stay clear and to leave the surrounding areas immediately for their own safety."

Public safety officials were regulating traffic in the area.

The disaster risk management centre and other relevant departments were on high alert on Sunday evening, he said.

They were working with the supporting disaster response agencies and public safety authorities as continuous light showers were forecasted for the forthcoming week across Cape Town.

"In the event of a life- or property-threatening emergency, the public are advised to dial 107 from a land-line or 021 480 7700 from a cell phone."

Solomons-Johannes said flooding, blocked drains, service disruptions and power failures could be reported to the city's 24-hour technical operations centre on 0860 10 30 89.

Motorists experiencing delays and deviations on roads could contact the city's transport information centre on 0800 65 64 63 for more information. – Sapa