The sod turning of a world-class disaster management centre took place in the J.B. Marks Municipality last Thursday.
J.B. Marks will be the first municipality in the province to build such a centre, with a price tag of about R18 million. It is set to be completed in May next year and fully functional by the end of 2019.
The member of the mayoral committee for public safety, Leon Mkhabela said the development would enable the municipality to prevent or manage disasters more effectively. ‘The enormity of the disaster problem today and in the foreseeable future calls for a more proactive approach that ensures effective disaster reduction at all levels towards sustainable development.’
‘Though it is not always possible to completely eliminate a risk, extensive experience and practice have shown that the damage caused by any disaster can be minimised largely by careful planning, mitigation and prompt action,’ he said.

What the disaster management centre will entail
Thabo Khupari, the head of the disaster management centre says the funds were sourced from the municipal infrastructure grant (MIG). The centre will allow the local authorities to conduct disaster risk assessment, develop a risk profile and promote disaster risk reduction in the municipality.

After completion, it will be resourced with an emergency communication system to dispatch fire services, municipal traffic, security, disaster management, environmental health, water and sanitation and electricity teams.

‘There will be a disaster information management database and the SAPS and security will monitor the CCTV system. There will also be a weather station to monitor the effects of climate change and plan accordingly.
‘The centre will have a direct line of communication with emergency medical and rescue services to dispatch and monitor the ambulances.’
As the ambulances are only dispatched from Klerksdorp at the moment, this will significantly reduce the response time.

Job creation
The consulting project engineer, Deon Slabbert says Mhiduve Consulting started the construction on 20 February. The construction will cost R18 955 639 and the developers will employ about 40 to 50 local labourers, excluding the sub-contractors, to stimulate the job market. ‘There are always unforeseen circumstances but we are positive that we will be able to complete the project by May next year,’ he said.

Disasters in J.B. Marks
Khupari gave the Herald a summary of some of the disasters of the past and those the municipality is prone to. ‘We are prone to windstorms, fires, exposure to hazardous materials in transit and dolomite. In the past four years, we have also experienced sinkholes that we have been able to manage thus far.’ Other disasters include flash flooding and fires like the one in 2011, in which most of the grazing land was lost.
The Herald has covered shack fires with loss of lives in the past.

In April 2017, the fire department found the three badly burnt bodies of Moleko Lephadi (30), Pule Macleod (7) and Baratile Macleod (6) lying among the scorched remains of the shack in Ext. 3, Sarafina.
In August last year, a father of two died in an inferno, screaming for help.

In the light of these incidents, the chief fire officer, Ditaba Semase says the municipality’s intention is to have three to four mini fire stations in Ikageng, Matlwang village and other areas. ‘At the moment, the response time is a challenge,’ he says.
In the past, the municipality has been quoted as saying that water is not always effective in dousing the flames. Semase says it depends on the type of fire. In fires caused by paraffin, they must use sand. ‘If a stove is burning, they must cover the fire with a damp cloth to cut off the oxygen supply,’ he said. The fire chief says they are currently assisting the community in basic firefighting techniques like how to extinguish a fire using the bucket system. ‘They can do this while waiting for the fire services to arrive,’ he says. According to him, oxygen, heat and fuel must be eliminated to fight a fire successfully.