MAHIKENG MAIL - MAHIKENG: Community members from the areas of Khunotswane Village near Zeerust and other nearby villages, affected by the recently heavy rains, have been living in dire conditions, with their homes being submerged in water for over four months.
The residents are struggling to come to terms with the prolonged unbearable living conditions, despite the intervention brought by the municipality to pump water out of the affected homes.
Residents described the situation as terrible, as it has been three months and the waterlogged homes have become a breeding ground for mosquitoes, becoming a health hazard with residents complaining of skin irritations and discomfort from relentless mosquito bites that have caused sores on children.
Other challenges include children being unable to attend school due to the flooding that destroyed some of their schooling resources such as books and uniform.
As a result, the learners are falling behind in their studies, which could have long-term consequences for their academic and professional futures. The parents are worried about the impact of this disruption on their children’s education and well-being.
The community is in urgent need of assistance to mitigate the effects of the flooding and restore normalcy to their lives as the intervention process is slow in progress - that of pumping water out of homes - on top of having lost their lost homes and furniture.
The community is in dire need of emergency assistance, including medical care, shelter and educational support for children.
The local municipality evacuated some residents to safer areas and provided food parcels to the affected families, however, there are questions on how the process unfolded, as it is alleged thatsome people who benefited in the process, were not families affected by flooding.
The community pleaded with authorities to urgently make progressive plans of pumping water out from the affected homes, as living conditions remain unbearable.
The DA this week said they had written to the Chairperson of the North West Legislature’s Portfolio Committee on Cooperative Governance, Human Settlements and Traditional Affairs, requesting that she call a joint committee meeting with key portfolios to get an update on the extent of government’s coordinated response to alleviate severe flood-affected communities throughout the province and further help assess the extent of damage to critical infrastructure, along with the timelines and financial costs required to facilitate repairs and bring disaster relief.
