Boteti floods displace, leave many hungry
Baboki Kayawe | Wednesday March 1, 2017 16:35
Floods wrecked havoc in the area from Makalamabedi to Mokubilo, with Mokobaxane being the hardest hit on Sunday. During the weekend, floods appeared to overun the village pouring in from a neighbouring pan, immersing structures and collapsing many buildings.
Many of the residents ended up spending the night in the open as the rains drenched them.
Eyewitnesses described the scene as harrowing and disheartening.
“On Sunday heavy machines were brought in to clear the water, but the situation was very ugly, some ended up trapped in the waterlogged areas. The relief team has been busy at work to assist many who are left without food and shelter,” said a villager. The main cause of poor drainage in the area is lack of culverts to let water out, therefore this has seen the tarred road covered by floodwater. Principal assistant district officer at the Boteti Sub-District, Bahithi Keiphokotse described the aftermath of the floods as damning.
“Assessment is still ongoing, hence I can’t give an exact figure of the affected families. So far, five households comprising of 27 individuals are accommodated at the primary school,” he said by telephone.
He feared more were still to be identified as the effect of the prolonged rains continued, further soaking the mud-hut structures that characterise the village. He said the structures kept on cracking and collapsing in the cause of time, he added.
Another challenge that confronted them was the fact that they had tents at ready for dispatch, but flooding and continual rains made it impossible for the teams to access the village.
“The floods have affected the whole area stretching from Makalamabedi to Mokubilo. Many are now in need of tents,” he said.
However, Keiphokotse said Mokobaxane’s state was peculiar, as most have had their food supplies washed away and damaged hence the need for urgency.
“We are yet to establish the number of those in need of the food baskets. The social welfare department is handling this well.”
The cost of relief and extent of need as well as related information is not sufficiently known yet, but a kgotla meeting convened yesterday morning was to establish all these, Keiphokotse further told Mmegi.
To facilitate drainage, Keiphokotse said tunnels and trenches have been dug.
On Monday, the National Disaster Management Office (NDMO) informed the public that the latest areas to be affected by floods due to heavy rainfall was Mochudi at Moshawana and Bophirima wards with 22 households affected.
“Households affected have been assisted with various relief items including food baskets, tents and five households have been relocated to a temporary shelter at Phaphani Primary School,” said a communiqué from the NDMO.
Most of those affected by the floods resided along the Notwane River bank.
In Molepolole and Lentsweletau areas in the Kweneng District 18 households were affected by floods due to the heavy rains while another area affected was Letlhakeng Sub District with 20 households, the disaster office said further.
In Ramotswa, the water level in the river was reported to have receded and the situation normalised by Tuesday. This included the Taung area where the road was by then open for use. In Lobatse the situation has also stabilised though the Disaster Management Committee is still monitoring the situation.
“NDMO wishes to urge members of the public to remain vigilant during the ongoing rainfall being experienced around the country.
The public is also advised that should they require any assistance due to possible flooding in their areas, they must contact the District Commissioner’s office, Police, Kgosi or any leadership in their respective areas.”