Counselling for the traumatised in Knysna

“What many don’t realise is that people are wandering around in their pyjamas or the clothes they wore when their houses burnt down on Wednesday or Thursday last week.”

These were the opening words of a person pivotal to the Knysna relief effort when interviewed by the Mossel Bay Advertiser this week.

Thomas van Dalen, who is AfriForum’s provincial co-ordinator: Eastern and Western Cape, explained: “These people are severely traumatised. Their homes and possessions have gone up in flames. Can you imagine how the children feel?”

If one considers that at least 439 homes burnt down, this means thousands of traumatised people.

Counselling 

AfriForum has its own trauma unit, with counsellors who help the victims of farm attacks.

The head of the trauma unit, Nantes Kelder, and two counsellors landed at the George Airport on Tuesday to travel to Knysna to offer counselling at no charge.

Van Dalen said: “They will go out and determine the need in conjuntion with churches. Nantes has many contacts with other trauma counsellers across the country. They will also make use of other people – we need as many resources as possible.”

If you have counselling qualifications and would like to help, call Adele Wright (072 970 1112).

“An AfriForum marketing team is in Knysna, filming a documentary which will show what happened in Knysna. They are interviewing members of the public, municipal staff and so forth,” Van Dalen said.

He explained that AfriForum was working in conjunction with Solidariteit’s Helpende Hand. Afriforum has also set up an Emergency Fund with a bank account number.

“The drop-off points and stores have been flooded with clothing and food and so forth. At this stage there is much fresh produce coming in. The municipality has asked people on farms to bring it in on a daily basis so food can be prepared.”

Cutting vegetables 

Van Dalen said there were teams of people cutting and blanching vegetables. Many whose homes were destroyed were being accommodated at guesthouses and lodges, but were not being provided with meals.

He noted there were not enough hands to sort and pack and many were coming from upcountry, for example from Bloemfontein, to help.

“People had to come and collect things they needed, because there was not the capacity to take things to them.

“Afriforum, in conjunction with Helpende Hand and other organisations, is putting up a centre in George. We have store rooms and we are taking in all donations, doing proper sorting of everything, putting it into packets, sizing it, items such as clothing and shoes.

“We are compiling a list of needs specifically and taking items to families, for example there will be a family in Brenton-on-Sea with specific needs.”

Toiletries, underwear, stationery 
Van Dalen said at this stage the largest need was for toiletries, women’s underwear and school stationery for children.

“We have already bought an initial R30 000 worth of stationery and toiletries using the Afriforum emergency fund. We will hand them over to Helpende Hand to distribute.”

Van Dalen said the handovers would be done in stages, so that needs could be determined first and the giving was focused and strategic, with people receiving items they really needed.

With donations coming in at so many different points, it took time to determine what had been handed in and what was still needed, he said.

“We need kitchen uitensils, buckets, mops, brooms. We will start looking at building materials and furniture at a later stage. Now we are focusing on immediate basic needs.” Contact Van Dalen on 081 217 0150.

Farmers 

In terms of farmers, he noted: “Grass, everything burnt. The farmers’ sheds all burnt down, even the water tanks. We are determining the need. People countrywide have offered to donate animal feed and logistics companies have offered to transport it at no charge.”

George resident Gerhardt Koch, who has been transporting supplies to Knysna, told the Mossel Bay Advertiser: “We need assistance. We have trucks and feed – a 2 000-bale donation from Newcastle and Bronkhorstspruit. We are only short of diesel.

“With 50 bales on a truck, we will need 40 trucks. We will need R20 000 per truck multiplied by 40, which equals R800 000.” Koch is working in conjunction with Amnesty International in George. If you are able to help, call him on 063 204 6238.

– Caxton News Service