230,000 Litres of Water, 47 Lives, Countless Homes: Inanda’s Flood Devastation

Forty-seven people. Children wading through water where their beds once stood.

That was the grim reality in KwaBester, Inanda, and eTafuleni this week after torrential weekend rains turned homes into pools of mud and sewage.

More than 230,000 litres of water had to be pumped out of just nine flooded homesa staggering volume that submerged furniture, clothing, and essential household belongings, and forced emergency intervention from the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport and Human Settlements.

The Scene

MEC Siboniso Duma spent the day visiting affected families, witnessing firsthand the destruction.

“We spent the whole day in KwaBester, Inanda and eTafuleni and met with nine families displaced by flooding following this past weekend’s heavy rainfall,” said spokesperson Ndabezinhle Sibiya on Wednesday.

Under extremely difficult conditions, specialised teams deployed high-pressure jetting machines and industrial-grade pumps to extract the water that had swallowed homes.

The Cause

While heavy rainfall triggered the floods, Sibiya pointed to a man-made factor that worsened the disaster.

“We must hasten to point out that the uncontrolled illegal dumping of solid waste caused the blockage of the stormwater pipelines.”

During the clean-up, workers removed debrisincluding a plastic trolley and compacted wastethat had clogged stormwater infrastructure. Clearing the obstruction allowed partial reopening of one pipeline and improved water flow in the area.

The Human Toll

Nine families have been displaced. Their homes, once places of safety, became uninhabitable. Their belongings, soaked and ruined. Their lives, upended.

What Comes Next

With the South African Weather Service predicting more heavy rainfall in March and April, officials say the affected families remain the department’s top priority.

Government is now exploring longer-term infrastructure upgrades, including expanding the existing twin 900mm culvert system along Main Road P93, amid concerns that increased water flow and blocked systems could lead to further flooding.

The Bigger Picture

The Inanda floods are a stark reminder that natural disasters are often worsened by human behaviour. Illegal dumping clogs drains. Blocked infrastructure amplifies rainfall. And communities pay the price.

For the 47 people wading through their flooded homes, the immediate crisis is water removal. But the longer crisisrebuilding, recovery, and resiliencehas only just begun.

{Source: IOL}

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