Floods wash away 11 homes
Precious household items and schoolbooks damaged
In the wake of heavy rains on Friday afternoon, 11 Kapuka Nauyala families were left with nothing after their homes and belongings were washed away or damaged in the informal settlement.
Muddy schoolbooks, damaged kitchen equipment, and a lost mud-soaked teddy bear were seen strewn among the detritus of lost homes and belongings of residents in the Kapuka Nauyala settlement after Friday's heavy rains.
"The exams are starting soon, and my children lost everything," said Emilia Naftal, a resident, pointing to the damaged schoolbooks covered in mud.
"The children are so scared and confused. And we can’t comfort them because we also don’t know what is going to happen next," she said.
Late to help
According to some residents, they phoned the municipality as soon as they realised there was a problem on Friday, but municipality staff allegedly arrived only after five in the afternoon, when the damage was done.
"The municipality has done nothing for us. They did not offer food or accommodation on Friday night, leaving us all to sit on chairs outside our homes to guard what was left of our belongings," Naftal said.
"The water took most of our things, including our IDs and driver’s licence cards. We don’t know where to begin looking for it."
Water in the area has also been shut off, leaving the residents unable to clean themselves.
Dangerous setting
One resident, who declined to be named, said he is very stressed because he lost his pistol and its license. "The water just took it. I don’t know where to start looking for it."
Residents were laying out mud-stained mattresses in the sun on Saturday in the hopes that they would dry by night, but the bases were all damaged.
According to Abel Hamutenya, of the Fire and Rescue division at the City of Windhoek, the affected residents built their homes beyond the border line of the riverbed, making it unsafe, especially during the rainy season.
"They are affected now and it has become our problem and we really need to assist because when lives are lost, it won’t be nice," he said.
He said the teams from the storm water department needed to come and assess the situation and give guidance. "It’s going to be problematic because more rain is still coming."
Long-standing worry
Another resident, Iileka Shetunyenga, said he has been calling the municipality since August, alleging he knew there would be a problem once the rainy season starts.
"The municipality removed the skip here five months ago, leaving us with no place to put our garbage," he said.
This could not be confirmed by the municipality.
Shetunyenga added that the residents began using the riverbed as a garbage disposal site. The garbage caused a blockage once the rain came, and the water had nowhere to go but up, flooding all the homes in the area.
Questions posed to the City spokesperson had not been responded to by the weekend.
"The exams are starting soon, and my children lost everything," said Emilia Naftal, a resident, pointing to the damaged schoolbooks covered in mud.
"The children are so scared and confused. And we can’t comfort them because we also don’t know what is going to happen next," she said.
Late to help
According to some residents, they phoned the municipality as soon as they realised there was a problem on Friday, but municipality staff allegedly arrived only after five in the afternoon, when the damage was done.
"The municipality has done nothing for us. They did not offer food or accommodation on Friday night, leaving us all to sit on chairs outside our homes to guard what was left of our belongings," Naftal said.
"The water took most of our things, including our IDs and driver’s licence cards. We don’t know where to begin looking for it."
Water in the area has also been shut off, leaving the residents unable to clean themselves.
Dangerous setting
One resident, who declined to be named, said he is very stressed because he lost his pistol and its license. "The water just took it. I don’t know where to start looking for it."
Residents were laying out mud-stained mattresses in the sun on Saturday in the hopes that they would dry by night, but the bases were all damaged.
According to Abel Hamutenya, of the Fire and Rescue division at the City of Windhoek, the affected residents built their homes beyond the border line of the riverbed, making it unsafe, especially during the rainy season.
"They are affected now and it has become our problem and we really need to assist because when lives are lost, it won’t be nice," he said.
He said the teams from the storm water department needed to come and assess the situation and give guidance. "It’s going to be problematic because more rain is still coming."
Long-standing worry
Another resident, Iileka Shetunyenga, said he has been calling the municipality since August, alleging he knew there would be a problem once the rainy season starts.
"The municipality removed the skip here five months ago, leaving us with no place to put our garbage," he said.
This could not be confirmed by the municipality.
Shetunyenga added that the residents began using the riverbed as a garbage disposal site. The garbage caused a blockage once the rain came, and the water had nowhere to go but up, flooding all the homes in the area.
Questions posed to the City spokesperson had not been responded to by the weekend.
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