The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) says it is waiting for provincial authorities to provide updates on the impact of the recent flooding.
Several provinces have been negatively affected by heavy rains with more than ten people reportedly killed in the Eastern Cape, Gauteng and Mpumalanga after they were swept away by floods.
Many households, schools and clinics have been badly damaged.
The SA Weather Service says conditions are expected to improve this week.
CoGTA spokesperson Lungi Mtshali says, “We are reliant on the provinces to provide us with the assessments and breakdowns in terms of what they require from Treasury. But in terms of the response, Mpumalanga has seemed to have recovered. But now it seems the Eastern Cape is struggling with the flooding.”
He adds: “Treasury has not allocated funding yet. It is work that is ongoing depending on the severity of this disaster. With the information coming from the provinces, Treasury will be able to give us a figure in terms of what will be made available.”
The audio below is reporting more on the story:
Meanwhile, parents of learners at Tyelinzima Senior Secondary School in Coffee Bay in the Eastern Cape are calling for urgent intervention.
This after the school was completely destroyed by devastating floods that hit the area over the weekend.
Only ablution facilities are left of what used to be Tyelinzima school.
The concerned parents say the over a thousand enrolled learners at the school will have to go to other nearby schools as they do not have a learning facility.
One parent says, “The situation was already worse especially when it rains. Our children’s books would get wet. The school is not properly built. The learners were studying under painful conditions.”
“This is a school that performs very well in the matric pass rate. We ask government to look into this because we have knocked on every door, begging them to build us a decent school,” adds another parent.
The floods have claimed the lives of six people in the Coffee Bay area.
OR Tambo District Municipality spokesperson Zimkhita Macingwane has urged communities to be vigilant when crossing bridges and rivers.
“There are 10 bridges that are totally inaccessible. So, we are making way [alternative route] so that people are not forced to use these broken bridges. We urge members of the community to continue to be vigilant and extra cautious,” adds Macingwane. -Additional reporting by Fundiswa Mhlekude
The video below is reporting more on the floods: