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IOL News
2 days ago
- General
- IOL News
Eastern Cape floods prompt national disaster declaration as death toll surpasses 100
The Gift of the Givers have been involved in the search and rescue operations in Mthatha in the Eastern Cape after devastating floods earlier this month claimed more than 100 lives. Image: Supplied The Eastern Cape province is reeling from the aftermath of devastating floods that have claimed the lives of more than 100 individuals and resulted in damage estimated at billions of rand. The national disaster declaration was announced by Eastern Cape Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) MEC Zolile Williams on Thursday, following floods earlier this month. Williams said following a comprehensive assessment, the South African government has officially declared a national disaster in response to this widespread destruction caused by the severe weather. While the death toll is expected to increase, Williams said as of June 26, 101 people were confirmed to have died as a result of the floods. The youngest victim, an infant of approximately 12 months, was recovered in Mthatha, while the search for two missing children continues. 'Ninety-four have been identified and handed over to their families. Processes are still ongoing to identify the remaining seven bodies.' Of the deceased, 38 are children, and 32 have been identified as pupils, he said. Williams said due to the time that has passed since the start of the disaster, DNA tests may be required to positively identify bodies found decomposed, thus implying that it may take longer to identify the deceased. The MEC said the province is still busy with the first phase of disaster relief, with the immediate response and humanitarian relief. According to Williams, response systems and mechanisms have been activated, and the department has partnered with humanitarian organisations like Gift of the Givers and Al-Imdaad Foundation, as well as private sector entities such as Old Mutual, MTN, Vodacom, local businesses, and supermarkets. He said that through these collaborations, relief support continues to reach communities whose homes and belongings were destroyed by the floods. The Department of Education has started replacing pupil and teacher support materials lost or destroyed in the disaster and providing uniforms to those affected, Williams said. The MEC said that despite the devastation, progress has been made in restoring services. 'The electricity supply has been restored to over 80% of affected customers, with over 95% of the water supply having been restored in OR Tambo and Amathole district municipalities, which were the most affected districts,' said Williams. He noted that the floods also caused significant damage to both economic and social infrastructure, including roads, schools, healthcare facilities, and livestock. 'The estimated cost of repairing the damaged infrastructure is R5.1 billion, with approximately R3.2 billion allocated to various sector departments and R1.8 billion for municipal infrastructure, according to the MISA assessment.' Regarding road infrastructure, he indicated that the estimated repair costs amount to R935 million, with R102 million allocated from the Department of Transport's budget. The MEC said a total of 6,869 households have been affected, of which 4,724 people have been left homeless across the province, except for the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro Municipality. 'While 2,145 homes were partially damaged, about R461 million is required for temporary residential units,' Williams said, adding that the province has allocated an amount of R120 million in this regard. He said the Department of Human Settlements, in partnership with the OR Tambo District Municipality, has successfully activated mass care shelters, including bed and breakfast facilities and community halls, to provide immediate housing for displaced families in OR Tambo and Inxuba. The South African Weather Service (SAWS) forecaster Andre Fourie confirmed that rain showers will begin to taper off by Sunday before bringing additional rainfall mid-week. As of Friday and Saturday, Fourie said Cape Town is anticipating a 60% chance of showers, along with a yellow level one warning indicating a minor impact with a medium likelihood of occurrence. He said over the weekend, the rain is expected to diminish significantly, with only a 30% chance of showers along the southern coast of the Western Cape, extending as far as Port Alfred in the Eastern Cape. Fourie predicted a dry day across the nation on Monday, providing a much-needed respite. Looking ahead, he stated that a new cold front is anticipated to approach the Western Cape by Tuesday. Rainfall is expected to return to both the Western and Eastern Cape on Wednesday, with a low-pressure system predicted to influence South Africa's weather on Thursday. This could lead to showers across the western parts of the Free State and North West provinces as well.
The South African
2 days ago
- Politics
- The South African
Eastern Cape officially declared a national disaster zone
The Eastern Cape province has officially been declared a national disaster zone in response to the widespread destruction caused by recent severe weather events. Eastern Cape Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) MEC, Zolile Williams said the declaration, made under the Disaster Management Act (Act No. 57 of 2002), comes amid heavy rainfall, flooding, strong winds, and snowfall that have battered large parts of the country, with the Eastern Cape being the hardest hit. Highlighting the provincial government response to the June disaster, Williams said the Department of Social Development, in partnership with private sector organisations, has extended crucial psychosocial support to displaced families, bereaved communities, and schools affected by the loss of learners. 'These services, which encompass counselling and emotional debriefing, are foundational to the healing and recovery process. Given the profound impact of the incident, we recognise this journey may be prolonged for those most deeply affected,' the MEC said. The Department of Health has also deployed on-site healthcare services, providing medical assistance and replacing chronic medication that was swept away by the floods to those in need. Ongoing assessments are also being conducted to assess health risks in temporary shelters. Williams also reported that the Department of Home Affairs has been active in various shelters across the Amathole and OR Tambo districts, assisting families with applications for essential documents, including Identity Documents (ID), birth and death certificates. To date, 478 identity document replacement applications have been submitted, through assistance from three mobile units deployed in each of the two districts. Local schools have resumed classes and provisions were made for learners who missed exams due to the disaster. Postponed examination papers were also written on 23 June 2025. 'Through the Department of Education, we have begun to deliver Learner and Teacher Support Material lost or destroyed during the disaster. We are also ensuring that uniform sets for learners in the flood affected schools has also resumed through the Provincial Department of Education.' Despite the devastation, significant progress has been made with the restoration of water and electricity in affected areas. According to Williams, the electricity supply has been restored to over 80% of affected customers, with over 95% of the water supply having been restored in OR Tambo and Amathole District Municipalities, which were the most affected areas. However, Williams noted that the floods caused significant damage to roads, schools, and healthcare facilities. He said the costs of repairing damaged infrastructure is estimated at R5.1 billion, and this include about R3.2 billion required across sector departments and R1.8 billion for the Municipal Infrastructure, as per MISA (Municipal Infrastructure Support Management) assessments. A total of 6 869 households were affected, with 4 724 people left homeless across the province, except for the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality, whilst 2 145 homes were partially damaged. 'R461 million is required for Temporary Residential Units (TRUs), however, the province has R120 million rand, and we are looking to national government for an intervention in this area,' Williams said. The Department of Human Settlements, in partnership with OR Tambo District Municipality, has activated mass-care shelters, including community halls and bed-and-breakfast facilities for displaced families in OR Tambo and Mnquma. Williams said these arrangements will be operational for at least 30 days. 'The Provincial Government is (also) securing land to facilitate the delivery of Temporary Residential Units and permanent housing, ensuring that our response addresses both urgent needs and long-term stability for these vulnerable communities. 'Currently, land has been identified in Mnquma for approximately 1 100 temporary residential units, while in the King Sabata Dalindyebo Municipality, land has been identified and we await a council resolution on the matter,' the MEC said. The floods caused extensive damage to road infrastructure, with the total repair estimated at R935 million. The Department of Transport has reprioritised R102 million from its budget, leaving a shortfall of R832 million. Emergency road clearance operations are underway, but 29 roads in Chris Hani and 22 in OR Tambo districts remain impassable. Internal teams began major repairs on 23 June 2025, and alternative routes are currently being used. In terms of public facilities, 431 schools and 69 health centres have been affected across the province. suffered damage. Repair work to the value of R600 000 has been completed on healthcare facilities. In the agricultural sector, interventions have been made in terms damage assessment, provision of veterinary services and technical advice. 'In the main, farmers have lost 1 339 units of livestock, 1 803 hectares of crops have been destroyed, suffered damages to machinery, irrigation material such as pipes and risers, water tanks and fencing materials,' Williams said. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
The Citizen
3 days ago
- Business
- The Citizen
Sars deducts billions from RAF for ‘Eskom payments' despite court interdict
Claims it had no choice otherwise National Treasury's records 'would not be accurate'. There is no official comment about Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana reportedly having been due to provide 'a certain affidavit' to the court since April. Picture: Moneyweb The South African Revenue Service (Sars) has, despite being interdicted from doing so, deducted R5.07 billion of the R5.1 billion it planned to deduct from the fuel levy payments it makes to the Road Accident Fund (RAF) – the R5.1 billion being the 'diesel refunds' amount Sars has agreed to pay Eskom. This was confirmed on Wednesday by RAF head of communications McIntosh Polela in response to questions emailed to the fund on 13 June. Moneyweb reported on 17 June that the RAF had applied for a contempt of court order against Sars because of its alleged failure to adhere to an interim interdict obtained by the fund in the High Court in Pretoria on 26 March 2025. The interim interdict prohibits Sars from deducting R5.1 billion – or any part of this amount – from the RAF fuel levies it collects and pays to the fund. Moneyweb requested comment from Sars, also on 17 June, about the alleged continuation of these deductions following the issuing of the interim interdict but has not yet received a response. ALSO READ: RAF castigated in high court case, but gets further Sars 'relief' in another Deductions continued Polela said Sars made its most recent deduction on Monday this week, and up to that date (23 June) has deducted a total of R5 072 360 844.85. He said deductions made by Sars to the monthly fuel levy payments it makes to the RAF were made this year on: 20 February (before the interim interdict prohibiting the deductions was issued) 28 March 22 April 27 May 23 June. Sars's alleged non-adherence to the interim interdict emerged in a parliamentary portfolio committee on transport meeting with the RAF on 11 June. Suspended RAF CEO Collins Letsoalo appealed to the portfolio committee to help the RAF with the issue of non-payment by Sars. 'Sars has acted recalcitrant,' said Letsoalo at the time. 'In fact, we have opened a case of contempt of court against them.' He added that, since April, Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana is supposed to have submitted 'a certain affidavit' to court on an urgent basis, but he has not done this and 'so they [Sars] keep on deducting the money'. 'Sars is unlawfully deducting our money. I hope this portfolio committee will write to them and ask them because clearly the ministry has not helped us,' he said. Questioned by portfolio committee chair Selelo Selamolela about the issue, Letsoalo said the RAF won its case against Sars, but the tax authority ignored the court order and still deducted the money. He indicated that by then – 11 June 2025 – he was sure Sars had probably deducted R5 billion of the money. ALSO READ: Scopa launches inquiry into RAF misconduct claims What does Treasury say? Moneyweb requested comment from National Treasury on 13 June about Godongwana's alleged failure to submit an affidavit to court related to the RAF's contempt of court application against Sars. Moneyweb also asked National Treasury if it could confirm that Sars continued to deduct amounts from the monthly fuel levy payments it makes to the RAF after the high court interdict was issued – and, if so, for comment about these deductions while an interdict prohibiting these deductions is in place. It responded last week, stating: 'The matter is before the court therefore, the National Treasury cannot comment until a ruling has been made.' ALSO READ: RAF CEO placed on special leave with full pay, as MPs grill fund Original dispute was with Eskom The dispute between the RAF and Sars relates to 'diesel refunds' claimed by Eskom in terms of the Customs and Excise Act. A dispute between Sars and Eskom arose when Sars decided that Eskom was not entitled to the diesel refunds for a period of about 30 months between 2019 to 2021. However, Sars and Eskom then entered into a settlement agreement on 17 October 2024 in terms of which Sars claimed it was obliged to pay Eskom an amount of about R5.1 billion. But Sars only informed the RAF of this agreement on 12 November 2024 – and that it would recoup the R5.1 billion from the RAF levies over a two-month period, which was subsequently extended to five months. Despite the RAF declaring a dispute with Sars in December 2024 in terms of the Inter-Governmental Relations Framework (IRF) Act and the ongoing dispute resolution process in terms of this act, Sars deducted the first tranche of about R1.2 billion from the RAF monthly levy payments. The fund only became aware of this deduction on 26 February 2025. Sars claimed it had no choice but to proceed in deducting/recouping the money because, if it did not, National Treasury's records would not be accurate. This resulted in the RAF lodging its urgent high court application. In a judgment handed down on 26 March 2025, Judge Ronel Tolmay said she was informed by counsel representing Sars that the certificate to National Treasury regarding the second tranche payment would be issued the same day she was hearing the matter. Tolmay interdicted and prohibited Sars from making the deductions, declaring the order operative for a maximum of 45 days from the date of the judgment, or until the dispute in terms of the IRF Act has been resolved. It is unclear when the RAF's contempt of court application against Sars will be heard. This article was republished from Moneyweb. Read the original here.
IOL News
4 days ago
- General
- IOL News
SANDF HAD NO RESOURCES FOR EC FLOODS
The number of people who have died due to flooding in the Eastern Cape has risen to over a hundred. Image: Supplied NO SOUTH African Air Force helicopters were available to assist with emergency operations in the Eastern Cape when the flooding occurred on June 10. It only became available seven days after tragedy struck as the death toll continued to climb, and this week surpassed 100, with a 5-year-old child being among the latest to be retrieved. Until Wednesday, the SANDF had remained tight-lipped about failure to deploy resources to affected regions in need of support. In response to the Cape Times' question, the SANDF said they were only alerted by the provincial authorities on the day of the incident on June 10. 'The South African Air Force Command Post (AFCP) received the first request for assistance with helicopter capabilities in the Eastern Cape (due to flooding) on 10 June 2025. At the time, there were no SAAF helicopter capabilities available. Upon receiving the second request for assistance on 16 June 2025, one (1) Oryx helicopter capability became available and was tasked to deploy on 17 June 2025,' the SANDF said. It remains unclear why the Oryx was only available seven days after the tragedy struck. IOL previously reported that the medium utility aircraft essential for rescue missions - was not deployed during the flooding, primarily due to a shortage of Flight Engineers. The flooding in the Amathole and OR Tambo districts between June 9 and 10 affected over 6 800 households, with more than 4 700 of them now homeless. There was also significant damage to road infrastructure, leaving 51 roads impassable. The Eastern Cape government says completed infrastructure damage assessments peg the costs for repairing damaged infrastructure at an estimated R5.1 billion. 'Efforts by search and recovery teams are ongoing as the province continues to respond to the disaster and assist affected communities. The confirmed recoveries have been recorded across several districts, with OR Tambo reporting the highest number at 77, followed by Amathole with 10 recoveries, Alfred Nzo and Chris Hani each with 5, while Joe Gqabi and Sarah Baartman districts reported 2 recoveries each. The gender breakdown shows that 49 are men and 52 are women. In terms of age, 63 of the recovered individuals are adults, while 38 children. 'The process of identification is now complex, with some bodies in a state of decomposition and as such DNA testing may be required in certain cases, which could lengthen the identification process,' said the Eastern Cape government. The Eastern Cape government and its national counterpart have come under sharp criticism for how they responded to the disaster, in particular for failure to prepare despite early warning. Western Cape Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning spokesperson, Wouter Kriel said the province offered support through the intergovernmental disaster coordination mechanisms facilitated by the National Disaster Management Centre (NDMC). 'We offered the deployment of a specialist rescue team from the Western Cape's emergency services and partners. This team is highly trained in swift water rescue and has experience in operating in complex disaster environments. While the Eastern Cape appreciated the offer of assistance, they did not request the physical deployment of Western Cape resources. As such, no teams or equipment were mobilised, although we remained on standby should the situation escalate or their needs change,' Kriel said
Eyewitness News
5 days ago
- Health
- Eyewitness News
EC flooding death toll rises to 97 as COGTA warns MPs that the numbers may rise
CAPE TOWN - The cooperative governance department has told Parliament that two more people have been confirmed dead in the devastating floods in the Eastern Cape, warning that the numbers may rise. Doctor Bongani Sithole, head of the National Disaster Management Centre, briefed the portfolio committee on cooperative governance and traditional affairs on Tuesday morning on their multi-departmental consolidated report on the province, which is still reeling from the devastating floods. Sithole also gave an update on the death toll, which now stands at 97. "Ninety-five people had been confirmed dead. This morning, we've since received an update but the HOD will confirm later. The number is 97, 23 of which are schoolgoing children." With the death toll rising, he said that the Eastern Cape would also require no less than R5 billion to repair the damage caused by the floods. Sithole said that the province suffered damage across several sectors and municipalities. "The cost of repairing damaged infrastructure is estimated at R5.1 billion and then R3.2 billion across sector departments and R1.8 billion for municipal infrastructure."
