Storms cause havoc again
“Anyone willing to assist in some way will be highly appreciated.”
The storms that were experienced on February 4 in Heidelberg were something out of a movie script.
HERAUT reported a few weeks ago about the Katjievrek stream in Romyn Street, Rensburg, that overflowed due to a storm and flooded the premises of 34 Romyn Street and the blocked streams in the area that need to be unblocked.
On February 4, Heidelberg experienced a new wave with heavy rains and flooding and the house of 34 Romyn Street flooded again.
“This time the flood was so much worse than the previous time,” homeowner Cathy Rickmann said.
The water flooded onto her premises from the Katjievrek stream and the whole yard and flat, where her daughter, Roxan Leslie, lives, was completely underwater.
The water filled her flat up to about one and a half metres in depth.
Roxan said, “The water was so deep it came to directly under my chest area.”
All the furniture in the flat was underwater and the electrical supply was also disrupted due to the flooding in the house.
The cars in the driveway were halfway underwater and were unable to start.
“Hopefully, the cars will start soon,” Roxan said.
Cathy said, “The pressure of the water in the yard was so severe it caused the wall and palisade fence on the one side of the property to collapse completely.
“We needed to call the fire department to come and assist, as the water was just too much.
“When the fire department arrived, they knocked a hole in the wall to get water released from the yard and then removed the front gate. By the time the gate was eventually removed, it looked like sluices of a dam opening up, as water poured out of the yard into the street.
“We do not know what to do anymore.
“We have been to the DA, FF+, municipality and mayoral office. It feels like everyone wants to shift the blame and no solutions are forthcoming.”
Glenda van Aswegen, a tenant at the house, said, “Solutions need to be reached as to how to fix the problem and sorted out to avoid the damage we are experiencing.”
Cathy said blockages in the stream need to be sorted out urgently to ensure this does not happen again.
“I do not have any insurance on the property and shudder to think what the costs will be to get the place back to living in again,” she said.
“I also now need to build a new retaining wall out of my pocket, as the municipality is not willing to assist in this regard.
“Anyone willing to assist in some way will be highly appreciated.”
