20 March 2007
KwaZulu-Natal Premier Sibusiso Ndebele has commended the people of
KwaZulu-Natal for the manner in which they rallied together during the adverse
weather conditions experienced in the province over the past two days.
The Premier also expressed his condolences to the families and relatives of
those killed and wished those injured a speedy recovery.
Emergency services personnel including officials from the South African
Police Service (SAPS), ambulance services, provincial government, local
government, the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) as well as ordinary
members of the public all rallied together to ensure that the loss of life was
minimised. For this we are extremely grateful to the people of
KwaZulu-Natal.
Officials from the provincial Department of Local Government and Traditional
Affairs in conjunction with the respective municipalities will today assess the
full impact of the damage caused which is expected to run into millions of
rands.
On the South Coast alone it is estimated that damage to mainly government
infrastructure, including roads and amenities at the beaches, runs into almost
half a billion rands.
"As at the early hours of this morning (20 March 2007) most of the affected
areas in the province were reported to be back to normal. However, emergency
services will remain on standby to monitor the situation. We also want to
assure visitors to our province that we are working hard to ensure that the
situation returns to normal," said Ndebele.
Most of the damage to the coastline from St Lucia in the north of the
province to Port Edward in the south occurred during the high tide in the early
hours of Monday morning.
Officials and residents along the entire coastline were seen cleaning up and
officials were doing their level best to protect members of the public.
The SA Weather Service in Durban said winds in excess of 40 knots [80kph or
gale force] were reported on Sunday night. The heavy weather forced the closure
of all port operations in Durban and Richards Bay.
It was reported that the particularly high tides experienced on Monday and
Tuesday was due to the alignment of the moon, sun and earth. This compounded
with the strong onshore winds had caused the huge surf.
Media contact:
Logan Maistry
Spokesperson to Premier Ndebele
KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government
Cell: 083 644 4050
E-mail: maistryl@premier.kzntl.gov.za
Issued by: Office of the Premier, KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government
20 March 2007
Source: SAPA
