The recent heavy rainfall has wreaked havoc in eBhubesini Settlement near the Crocodile River.
It left 12 families homeless when their houses were flooded and some destroyed on Sunday, February 12.
The floods washed away roads and destroyed transformers and drainage systems.
Some vehicles were swept away. There were reports that a VW Polo had been spotted floating down the Crocodile River.
As heavy rain is still expected, some community members fear the worst is yet to come.
“Living in the low-lying area is a problem because we now fear that we might be swept away in our sleep by floods. The area is severely affected. People lost their electronics, some lost their vehicles and others are homeless. I think people should refrain from invading land and building near streams as natural disasters will be the end of them,” said one.
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“There are no reports of drownings or deaths in our area at the moment,” said Thabiso Mahlalela, the ward councillor of Tekwane South.
He said he is currently assisting various families who are affected. “It is a mess here, and many people are now without shelter and have lost everything. The area at the moment is a wrecked, but people have been moved to safety.”
Mahlalela said they are appealing to everyone to help where they can. “We have moved the victims to the community hall and provided temporary shelter and sponge mattresses.
This is a total disaster and we are urging those who can help to chip in with food and food parcels so that the families have something to eat. We are waiting for the departments of community safety and human settlements to come and assess the damages and provide directives.”
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Mahlalela said community members should refrain from building structures near riverbanks.
“We would like to give a strong warning that people must stop invading land near rivers, as it will pose a danger to them. This should be a wake-up call to people that they must only build on areas provided by the City of Mbombela, as it will be well planned and accessible areas with limited risks of natural disaster.”
The municipality was contacted for a comment, but had not responded by the time this was published.
