A meeting was called recently at Umgababa’s N2 Shell Ultra City service station where flood victims have been staying since April to discuss safety issues.
ALSO READ: Land identified for the Umgababa flood-displaced
After some community members lost their homes, the Umnini Community Trust, which was founded by chief Phathisizwe Luthuli of Umgababa, requested that the market stalls at the service station be opened up to
accommodate them as a temporary measure.
Speaking on behalf of Shell Downstream South Africa, Pam Ntaka confirmed the meeting. “This engagement addressed the potential safety risks associated with staying at a filling station as well as accommodation options the Umnini Community Trust with other government bodies have made available to try and resolve the current situation,” she said.
The trust’s chairperson, Nomusa Nkabinde, said the meeting took place between Shell Downstream South Africa, the trust, and representatives of the displaced families.
“The safety concerns stem from the fact that the filling station has flammable fuel and it is not suitable for human settlement. This was only meant to be a temporary measure,” said Nkabinde.
She said the trust is waiting for the Department of Human Settlement and eThekwini Municipality to move the people out to permanent houses.
In July, eThekwini Municipality spokesperson Msawakhe Mayisela told the SUN that land had been identified to build houses for Umgababa flood victims, and technicians were running surveys to determine its suitability.
Sibongile Ndlovu, a pensioner, lost her home during the floods and has been staying at the market stalls ever since. She lost everything when her house slid down a slope into a ravine at 02:30
on that fateful day.
“We feel forgotten. Shell has been telling us we need to move out because it’s not safe, but where
are we going to go? The municipality is not saying anything, and the people who used to come and give us updates stopped doing so months ago,” she said.
Questions to eThekwini about the Umgababa flood victims’ plight were not replied to at the time of publication but at the full city council sitting of October 27, a request to re-prioritise funds to assist flood victims with the accommodation was approved.
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