Eastern Cape residents say they’ve been ignored by government after floods

Residents of Norwood in Mthatha in the Eastern Cape are crying foul, saying they have been ignored by the provincial government and King Sabata Dalindyebo local municipality (KSD) despite suffering massive property damage during a recent devastating storm in the area.

The distraught residents also claimed the authorities were concealing the possibility that someone might have opened the dam sluice and let the water flow into nearby communities. They demanded that this be investigated, though they at the same time expressed no hope as a previous incident in 2013 was allegedly never investigated.

Norwood is a middle-class suburb on the banks of the Mthatha River, which is believed to have burst its banks and spilt water over into nearby informal settlements and Norwood suburb.

The last death toll figure was 90, some of whom were school children whose school bus was swept away by the floods.

Many people who lost their homes and belongings were accommodated in makeshift shelters and halls nearby. This, while an alternative housing was being organised as an interim measure.

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However, at nearby Norwood, houses on 5th, 6th and Zigzag avenues, which are closer to the river, were the most affected. The area’s electricity supply went off on the second day of the storm, 10 June.

An angry resident, Siyasanga Kubukeli, who lives on 5th Avenue, accused both the KSD and the provincial government of not caring about them.

“No-one has attended to our problem, no government official has come to Norwood, which is not even mentioned as an affected area. We lost everything – all our belongings; from furniture to everything we had; our house here is in a bad state. We are left to rebuild on our own and start afresh to put our lives together,” Kubukeli said.

She said she could not explain why they were always left out for assistance, alleging during the 2013 storm, the area was also left to fend for itself with no help from the government.

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Her concern was echoed by her brother, Mfundo Kubukeli, who lives in the damaged family house. He said the water had never flooded so rapidly and fast, raising suspicion a human hand was involved.

He suspected that a municipal official might have opened the dam sluice, causing flooding that engulfed all areas along the dam, including Slovo, Decoligny and Norwood. He said the municipality promised to investigate the cause of the 2013 storm, but nothing happened and no assessment was done in the suburb.

“Even in the latest incident, Norwood was ignored. Our municipality cares about illegal occupants from informal settlements who invaded land. Those people don’t pay rates and they have been removed many times but they came back,” Mfundo said.

Babalwa Buku, a resident at 5th Avenue, said everything in their house was damaged. “The floors, furniture and even our car was filled up with water during the storm. My parents, who are old, had to run out of the house early in the morning as water was rising inside the house.

“We need our electricity to be reconnected because it has been gone since 10 June.”

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Another tenant in 5th Avenue, Nomakalinde Mphani, said: “Norwood does not exist in the eyes of government officials. Our houses are flooded, it’s even worse for those who live in backyard places. There is no assistance from the government, not even a single blanket, but we see people from other areas being given groceries.

“I have nothing left, nobody was able to take anything out, our television sets and our electric appliances are in a mess. But nobody came to assist us from the municipality; they gave some of us soup and bread at the civic centre.”

But KSD municipal spokesperson Sonwabo Mampoza said Norwood residents had not been forgotten, but resources were concentrated on rescuing victims of the floods and those swept away by water around the informal settlements.

Mampoza said Norwood was not the only place not attended to immediately, but several villages in Mqanduli, Sitwayi near Ngangelizwe and Tabase were also affected. He said attention would be given to these villages and Norwood as the next step.

“We are taking care of Norwood, only that we were attending to the emergency cases such as rescuing people in immediate danger,” he said. “We urge the residents of Norwood to contact their ward 8 councillor, Makhosandile Majeke, to be registered on the database of the areas affected by the floods.”