Durban – The Gift of the Givers announced yesterday (Wednesday) that teams would be visiting storm affected areas in Durban following Tuesday’s storm that swept across KwaZulu-Natal.
This comes after the KZN Department Department of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs said the Inanda township in the north of Durban was the most severely affected area.
Flooding and other damage was also reported in other areas of Durban.
Dr Imtiaz Sooliman, founder of Gift of the Givers, said they had been in constant communication with individuals in their network, councillors and disaster management teams during the course of the night and early this morning.
“Assessment was not possible yesterday (Tuesday) with the ongoing rain, traffic volumes and darkness settling in,” he said.
According to Sooliman, thus far the feedback has been very encouraging, compared to the floods of April last year.
“Even though many roads were flooded and areas were impassable in the CBD and surrounding communities, there has not been much destruction. Informal settlements have not been washed away, bridges, roads, water and power infrastructure were intact, and loss of life was minimal.
“The sun is bright today, roads are fully functional and citizens of this resilient province are on the move,” he said.
Sooliman said Inanda was the epicentre of the destruction, including Bambhayi, Dube Village, Amaoti and Ohlanga. Folweni, near Umbumbulu, Pennington, near Umzinto and Oshiweni near Port Shepstone were the other affected areas.
“Gift of the Givers teams are on their way for site visits whilst the warehouse teams are at work preparing aid for distribution. Fortunately, in spite of the torrential rain, this disaster is minuscule compared to the floods of April 2022,” he added.
The Minister of Human Settlements, Mmamoloko Kubayi, together with KwaZulu-Natal Premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube, as well as eThekwini Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda led a government visit to the community of Inanda yesterday (Wednesday).
