- this may worsen the situation in all affected areas
Heavy rains which have resulted in wide spread flash floodings leading to damage to infrastructure and property across most part of the country continue to pour with authorities warning that the current situation may persistent possibly up to next week Friday, potentially worsening the situation in all affected areas.
The country has received a considerably high amount of rainfall over the past few days which has resulted in flooding in some areas leaving behind a lot of destructions to infrastructure, property, and also disrupting normal life as well as accessibility to services.
Rainfall of 50 mm or more have fallen in various parts of the country and is still expected in the next three days which might further result in prolonged flooding. Authorities have further warned that the rainfall is expected to continue, even though at lower rates until next week Friday.
As visible, the impact has extended beyond road networks, affecting shopping centers and several residential homes, many of which have been severely flooded. This has led to among others the closure of multiple roads and the evacuation of some of the affected people to much more safer places. Gaborone has also been badly affected by the floods which have caused damage to property.
The most affected areas include Ghanzi Central, Kweneng, Kgatleng and South East districts. In Ghanzi alone, a total of 544 people were this week evacuated from their flooded homes to safer places including primary schools, community homes and hospices. Among the 544, 440 were from D’kar while 104 were from the Ghanzi township.
Ghanzi District Commissioner, Walter Ramotadima said they continue to remove water from flooded yards with the hope of returning those in Ghanzi back to their homes this Friday before moving on to assist those in D’kar. He said though the skies are currently clear, high chances are that the rains may start to pour again in coming days.
According to him, most of the affected residents were squatters as they have built infrastructures that cannot withstand the impact of floods. He added that another challenge is that Ghanzi does not have storm water drainage and in times of heavy rainfalls like this, infrastructures and residential homes end up being flooded.
Meanwhile, as a responsive measure, the Minister for State President, Moeti Mohwasa yesterday announced that government to this end has immediately convened a national emergency operation center chaired by his ministry. The mandate of this center he explained is to ensure that they mobilise and coordinate the necessary manpower and other resources required to intervene in the situation.
He added that below the center, is the national technical coordination team chaired by the commissioner of police, Dinah Marathe. Mohwasa noted that this team include the Botswana Red Cross Society which has also commenced work to aid their responses on the ground.
Furthermore, he indicated that at the national level, the regional emergency response teams led by the district commissioners has also been coordinating, much closer to the people and remain on alert day and night to respond accordingly.
“Firstly, we would like to assure Batswana that while naturally the nation will likely suffer loss of property due to such a natural disaster, top priority for government is to preserve lives of our people,” the minister assured.
Mohwasa revealed that despite the fact that government resources are constrained, government has however already begun the process of identifying all means it can spare to help resource the national response. In addition, government has also decided for all schools including tertiary institutions to remain closed until further notice from the relevant ministries. Working and knocking off times for public service employees has also been adjusted.
He has since emphasised the need for all to comply strictly with safety regulations as provided by various response agencies aimed at preserving lives, ensuring safety for all and where possible avoiding loss or damage to property.
“In some parts of the country, local response agencies will, should the need arise, advise that people be evacuated to safer locations, so I implore Batswana to comply. The safety of children is more than ever paramount, parents should be vigilant about their whereabouts.”
