By Kouthar Sambo

The Western Cape Government reported that the reconstruction of road infrastructure is still underway after the recent floods.

This comes after the MEC for Infrastructure, Tertuis Simmers, visited McGregor in the Langeberg Municipality yesterday. The town was cut off after a bridge was washed off by the floods, leaving some roads to remain closed after the damage brought on by the storm.

Simmers said the construction of the McGregor bridge is scheduled to be complete within a month.

Speaking across the VOC airwaves earlier this evening, Simmers said the worst part is that the incident was unprecedented in magnitude, given two months of rain in less than 48 hours.

“What we have seen across all three of these districts is a personal loss in property, as some houses were washed away – and I saw this with my own eyes yesterday,” confirmed Simmers.

“We have also seen communities that have deterred access to services in terms of electricity while some communities within the Overberg area have been without electricity for eight days because Eskom cannot come out and reconnect the power since the river is still flowing too strong,” reiterated Simmers.

Due to the weather infrastructure built over many years, other communities have no water, explained Simmers, which called for more water trucks to enter the town.

“Above all, essentials such as food, medical needs, and even basic items, which you and I take for granted, had to be flown into some communities over the last few days,” added Simmers.

He further commended some local farmers and humanitarian organisations, particularly Gift of the Givers, who have been hands-on in providing relief to affected families and assisting in mop operations.

Furthermore, Gift of the Givers also reported that the Cape Winelands town of McGregor has been isolated since the inclement weather, resulting in a lack of proper water, food, and fuel.

Speaking on VOC’s Drive Time show earlier today, Gift of the Givers Ali Sablay said the residents of the town had reached out to the organisation for assistance since Sunday.

“We were called by the Cape Winelands District Municipality’s Disaster Management team, and the Langeberg Municipality informed us that the town has been cut off since the 25th of September when the main road in McGregor was completely washed away,” expressed Sablay.

“Since supplies have run out, there is a shortage of clean drinking water, the ATMs are out of money, there is no fuel in the town, and those receiving social grants were unable to receive any form of assistance as there are no vehicles or delivery trucks that can enter into the town,” explained Sablay.

However, Sablay further emphasized that the organisation, along with Western Cape Traffic Officials and the Disaster Risk Management teams, figured out a way to reach McGregor via a mountain pass.

“Although some of our vehicles got stuck, we successfully reached there at 11 am this morning and you could imagine the overwhelming joy when our trucks pulled up with delivery hampers, water, blankets, toiletries, and baby care packs,” added Sablay.

Photo: Gift of the Givers/Facebook