Johannesburg will declare a state of disaster

Following disastrous rains that devastated infrastructure and cost the city millions, the City of Joburg has declared a local state of disaster.

Joburg mayor Mpho Palatse warned on Monday (19 December) that severe downpours that contained larger than typical hail stones caused damage to property, wildlife and flora,and key infrastructure in the city, including roads, traffic signals, buildings, substations, power stations and pipelines.

Following days of rain have put further strain on already damaged infrastructure and continue to impact the lives and livelihoods of Joburg residents, she added.

Due to the scale of the damage, notably to City Power’s network, the city sought for and was given a three-day reprieve from load shedding by Eskom, which enabled the city handle major power concerns.

However, she stated that the present damage to state infrastructure is around R300 million, and the city anticipates this amount to rise because certain locations are still under water or inaccessible, making an exact and final evaluation impossible.

“It is in this context that I signed off on a report from the City’s Disaster Management Centre, which has been submitted to the Provincial and National Disaster Management Centres, stating our intention to declare a Local State of Disaster,” the mayor said.

The declaration of a Local State of Disaster will allow the city to access resources from the provincial and national levels of government, if needed, and will speed up supply chain management operations.

However, to declare a Local State of Disaster, the city requires consent from the provincial and national domains of government.

“We, therefore, trust that the detailed report submitted to the relevant authorities will accelerate the declaration of a Local State of Disaster,” the mayor said.

“We do not want a repeat of a feverish scramble for contracts like we saw during the early Covid-19 years; therefore, the City’s Group Risk and Assurance Services will keep a focused eye on procurement. The Multi-Party Government will not allow the corrupt to sacrifice lives and livelihoods for self-enrichment,” she said.

Currently, the Incident Management Support under Public Safety is used to fund the provision of emergency-disaster assistance goods. This situation will also need a review and revision of the 2022/23 budget.

The City of Joburg is also entering into a collaboration with the Western Cape Provincial Government to depend on its experience in dealing with catastrophes, the mayor added.

City authorities will continue to examine and clean up the city and disaster-affected regions, while restoration work will begin where practicable.