City tackling flooding, says councillor

The City is doing all it can to solve flooding problems in Duynefontein and Melkbosstrand, says the councillor for the area.

Residents say they have endured deluged roads, parks, greenbelts and homes during heavy rains over the past three weeks.

“Every time it has rained recently, we experience floods in our community of Melkbos, and Duynefontein seems to be heavily affected. There seem to be waterlogged areas at the Koeberg Nature Reserve and other surrounding areas, and when it rains, the water flows towards the community,” said ward councillor Paul Swart.

Disaster Risk Management staff had been laying out sandbags, and traffic officers had been diverting motorists from flooded roads, he said.

“Edward Crescent seems to be one of the major problem areas in Duynefontein, and the area is being constantly monitored,” he said.

“The large amount of rainfall in the last three weeks has extremely exacerbated the situation, and that is why we find ourselves with these floods.”

Residents who spoke to Tabletalk said the City should have been better prepared to deal with the flooding.

“While I understand that rainfall is a natural occurrence and basically isn’t anything we can stop, there have to be provisions in place so our streets don’t flood. We are paying lots of money in rates and taxes and have invested so much into our properties. Will we be compensated if there is any damage to our properties? What about the constant wetness in the area? That will make us and our loved ones sick especially during winter,” said Cheryl Kemp.

Carl Mienaar said: “As soon as there is just a little bit of rain, our streets start flooding. What is happening with our drainage systems? Has the City not prepared enough for this winter or what?

“I have lived through many winters, and this has to be the first time in recent memory where our streets are waterlogged for weeks on end.

“I have noticed that since the elections a few months ago, service delivery has been poor again. Makes you wonder if these people in government actually care or they want to use us for votes and then throw us in the gutter when they are done with us.”

Mr Swart said the area had not seen such heavy rains since 1983 and the City was doing all it could to respond.

“The issue isn’t with the drainage systems because those are working just fine. With the efforts currently being deployed by City officials and as the rainfall starts to fade away, the area will go back to its normal state,” he said.