Human Settlements Minister Thembi Simelane has dispatched a team from the national department responsible for emergency housing to work with KZN officials to assist households affected by recent heavy rains in the Umshwathi Local Municipality.

SAnews reports that, according to the preliminary assessment, about 400 people, including close to 200 children and 163 women, have been affected.

“The team is currently conducting a full assessment, which will determine the required intervention. There are four categories of emergency housing interventions provided by the department, namely, restoration, relocation, rebuilding and repairs.

“Should there be a need for the relocation of the affected households, the municipality will have to identify a piece of land that will be suitable for human settlement,” Simelane said in a statement.

The minister and the department have also conveyed condolences to the family of the deceased, who was swept away during the heavy rains.

A woman’s body was recovered from the Injasuthi River in New Hanover in the uMshwathi Municipality on Monday. Two other people were also swept away.

“These are difficult times for our sector. We appeal to our communities to be vigilant, exercise caution and refrain from building structures on flood lines or areas prone to floods,” Simelane said.

KZN Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs MEC Thulasizwe Buthelezi visited flood-affected areas in uMshwathi yesterday and on Tuesday to assess damage and provide relief to the affected families.

Buthelezi called on the municipalities across the province to enforce bylaws preventing people from building houses without permission.

Yesterday, The Witness reported that the search continued for Zanele Ndlela (28), from Ndwedwe, and Lungelo Bhonswayo, from the Eastern Cape, who are both still missing after heavy rains wreaked havoc, destroying homes and roads and displacing at least 100 people in New Hanover in the uMshwathi Municipality on Sunday afternoon.

On Tuesday, desperate community members gathered at the river bank, singing worship songs and praying fervently.

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