Durban — The KwaZulu-Natal provincial government alongside the eThekwini Municipality has unveiled a programme to rehouse victims of the recent flood disaster from Reservoir Hills who are still housed in mass care centres.
Premier Sihle Zikalala delivered an update on the resettlement of flood victims, mainly from an informal settlement in Annet Drive where, he said, two persons died, and one 8-year-old child was still missing.
The update was delivered next to the land that is being prepared to house the community sheltered currently in Truro Hall.
The premier launched the first phase of the programme to rehouse flood victims and unveiled parcels of land secured and linked to each mass care-centre, he said, “ as part of a programme to get the lives of our people back to normal and give them back their dignity.”
“There are currently eight sites identified to build temporary residential units (TRUs) in eThekwini Metro with three in the North Region and five in the West Region. We are at a stage to start delivery of the 1 074 TRUs as part of the first phase,” Zikalala said.
“The province has 84 mass care centres of which 44 have already been linked with a possible land parcel. Detailed assessments on the 44 recommended properties are complete and are due to be released by the National Department of Public Works and Infrastructure through Power of Attorney from one department to the other.”
Zikalala said that the completed layouts will yield a total of 1 074 TRUs including ablution. Preliminary engineering design processes are underway for all sites and service providers had been appointed.
“What is most important is that the Department of Human Settlements has found the land to permanently settle the flood victims and they identified government land that is less than one kilometre from the Annet Drive Informal Settlement,” Zikalala said.
“We are pleased to announce that a social facilitation process has been concluded and the government took a compromise position where 76 TRUs will be erected simultaneously to a permanent housing development process.”
Zikalala said that other pieces of land that were secured were:
- In Cotton Lands designs for 356 units and 14 ablution blocks are complete;
- In Ntuzuma 138 units and 6 ablution designs complete;
- Roodekrans the layout comprising of 99 units and 6 ablution blocks is completed;
- In Pemilton, the layout comprising of 80 units and 6 ablution blocks is completed;
- Other parcels are in Uitkoms farm, Klaarwater, Lange Fontein, Ntshongweni; and
- There are other properties that are at the land acquisition stage, including La Mercy, Pollock and Tshelimnyama.
“So far, the Human Settlements Department has identified projects worth R2 127 542 632.24 as necessary to return the displaced back to normal lives. The department has reprioritised R515 975 906.24 from its own allocated funds.
“This however means that the province requires an additional R1 611 566 726 in order to complete the process of rehousing all the identified communities that are currently staying in mass care centres mainly in the eThekwini Metro,” Zikalala said.
KwaZulu-Natal Public Works and Human Settlements MEC Jomo Sibiya, said TRUs were a small unit where a family could live. They are the most efficient to build and speedily. They have doors, windows, slabs, decent panels, kitchens, big bedrooms and sitting areas.
Sibiya said TRUs cost R68 000 and they were 30sqm.
“They are not too far from RDP houses. Their durability can go up to 10 years but we do not plan to go that far.”
Daily News