Masiphumelele disaster gazetted, fire debris being cleared, affected residents registered
20 December 2020
City of Cape Town officials remain hard at work assisting residents that have been affected by the fire in Masiphumelele, which razed more than 1 000 dwellings on Thursday evening, 17 December 2020. The next day, 18 December 2020, Cape Town Executive Mayor, Alderman Dan Plato, signed the Local Disaster Declaration which sets in motion the process for relief funding from the national government, in terms of Section 55 of the Disaster Management Act, 2002 (Act 57 of 2002). The documents allowed the Western Cape Local Government to gazette the disaster which will enable the City to issue building kits to the registered fire-affected residents once funding becomes available. Funding will be channeled from national through Western Cape government as per legislated requirements. The City is doing its best to expedite the process, as far as its powers allow.
Solid Waste Management Department officials are still clearing the affected site from the significant volume of debris. Site clearing is expected to continue until mid-week next week, if all goes according to plan. The site is situated in a wetland that was illegally occupied, thus the water table is very high making it difficult for machinery to operate on the site.
The City’s Informal Settlements Management Department has worked non-stop to screen and register 1 096 fire-affected heads of household thus far. All the members of the households have been verified as well. The process has almost been completed. The registration process includes special assistance to medically vulnerable people who are in need of medication that has been destroyed in the fire and assistance to the elderly.
The City is adding a storage facility for donated items. Thanks to the outpouring of kindness and concern from Capetonians, additional storage is required because of the large volumes of donations that have been received.
City Law Enforcement is on site to prevent the premature rebuilding of structures as the site is not yet safe for rebuilding.
The City urges the leadership structures to encourage affected residents not to attempt to rebuild on site until the City gives the go ahead and all necessary processes have been followed. This might take a while and will not happen overnight.
After the site has been cleared and treated and formally re-established, plots will be demarcated and proof of residence certificates will be issued to the registered affected residents, subject to the national disaster declaration that is being awaited.
Electrical infrastructure, a substation as well as toilets, taps and standpipes have been destroyed. This must be reinstated when the site has been cleared. This cannot be done if the fire-affected start rebuilding prematurely.
An onsite Joint Operations Centre was established by the City’s Disaster Risk Management and regular briefings with all the important role-players are taking place to facilitate coordination and management of the disaster.
Building kits will only be able to be procured once the disaster process is finalised and the funding has been received by the City, and the site is ready for rebuilding.
‘A multi-agency and department response has been ongoing at the site to ensure the swift and accurate addressing of the needs of residents. I conducted a site visit to determine the extent of the disaster and to assess the needs of the residents. This was important for the disaster declaration process. With the declaration of a local disaster now formalised, the kits can begin to be distributed once the funding comes through and all necessary site re-establishment has taken place. Unfortunately, this cannot happen overnight as it is a very complex and intricate process.
‘I wish to thank the organisation Gift of the Givers which has been feeding the more than 6 000 fire-affected residents. The organisation Living Hope is also playing a vital role in coordinating the donations and relief and we are grateful to have them on board to do the good work that they are doing. Thank you also to Respond Church Consortium for its assistance. Thank you to the many Capetonians that have donated aid thus far. The outpouring of love and kindness for the fire-victims is truly appreciated.
‘We appeal to members of the public to please donate essential items such as blankets, baby food, nappies, baby milk and non-perishable food to Living Hope in Masiphumelele. Please also support animal welfare organisations that are collecting cat and dog food donations for the affected families’ pets. As a City, we are doing everything in our power to expedite the process of accessing the national disaster funding,’ said Mayor Plato.
‘The process of a formal disaster declaration is now required due to national government budget cuts resulting in the City no longer being able to offer the extra service of fire and flood kits provision to residents outside of declared disasters. For more than a decade, Cape Town was the only metro in South Africa that offered this additional service outside of a declared disaster. National grant funding was used in the past to fund the procurement and issuing of building kits, irrespective of a declared disaster. By circumventing the disaster declaration process, beneficiaries could be assisted with kits within days of a fire occurring and a site being re-established. Due to the cut in the national grant, the process will now be a bit more protracted but we continue to work hard to get the relief to our affected residents in the shortest possible time.
‘The City continues to call for conditional grants not to be cut and for other solutions to be found nationally. We urge the leadership in Masiphumelele, the community at large and the fire-affected residents to continue to work with the City,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Human Settlements, Councillor Malusi Booi.
To donate, please contact Living Hope who is coordinating the relief efforts: 082 465 9067. The City thanks Living Hope, Gift of the Givers and Respond Church Consortium for the assistance.
It is believed many affected residents are staying with friends and family in the area. The City urges affected residents not to rebuild until the City has finalised all processes.
Again, the City urges leadership to encourage fire-affected not to rebuild prematurely, and to keep access ways clear from structures to ensure emergency and basic services access.
The South African Social Security Agency was requested to provide social relief assistance.
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Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office
