The South African government has released about US$70 million in emergency relief funds to help over 40,000 people left without shelter, water and electricity by flash floods that hit KwaZulu-Natal province this week.
Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana said the funds were an initial batch of emergency relief to be made available for use by the thousands of victims, and that more would follow in the days to come after a ministerial assessment.
“We are still at an emergency relief stage. There is a need for speed in this matter,” Godongwana said on Friday.
He added: “The first phase is to get professionals to make an assessment of the damage and the full cost. The second phase is going to be a recovery and repair stage.
Local authorities estimated the cost of the damage at billions of dollars as the floods around the Indian Ocean port of Durban and the surrounding settlements had knocked out power lines, shut down water services, and interrupted operations at southern Africa’s busiest port.
The flash floods have washed away homes and roads, and killed over 340 people in KwaZulu-Natal.
Volunteers have already started cleaning up plastic containers, piles of bamboo and driftwood from the Durban beachfront.
President Cyril Ramaphosa on Wednesday declared the situation in the area a provincial state of disaster to enable the release of support from the national purse.
NM/jn/APA