We need a proactive plan to mitigate disasters
Disasters are an unfortunate fact of life.
Consider the gale force winds that caused damage to properties, power lines and water pipes in the metro just last week; the devastating 2017 fires across NMB and Kouga that caused loss of lives, homes, livestock and destroyed a large part of Woodridge College; the building collapse in George in May that claimed 34 lives and the Covid-19 pandemic.
How well prepared were we, and how well did we respond to protect lives, property and infrastructure?
Disaster response is not only about saving lives and property in the moment, but also restoring living conditions with dignity, and reinstating infrastructure so that life, work and business can continue.
How well did we restore households and complete cleanups and repairs to properties and infrastructure in the aftermath?
The severe flooding in the Bay in early June this year, when ±230mm of rain bucketed down in a matter of hours, affecting Kariega in particular, highlighted our metro’s inadequate planning, preparedness and response.
More than 2000 people had to be relocated and at least 10 lives were lost.
Damage was caused to stormwater drains, bridges, sports facilities, depots, community halls, electricity infrastructure, homes and business premises – estimated initially at a cost of over R1bn.
Re-settlement of people living in high flood-risk areas, and restoration of households and repairs to buildings is still dragging on, severely impacting the communities of Lapland and Kariega Central, as but two examples.
This is not a criticism of emergency services personnel and disaster management officials on the ground, whose dedication in the face of disaster to save lives at risk to their own, must be greatly appreciated and recognised.
We also recognise that they are operating under difficult conditions, under-resourced and under-staffed.
Inadequate resourcing, preparedness and response comes down to a lack of planning. The metro’s disaster management plan was last updated in 2010, in contravention of the Disaster Management Act regulations that require review and updating every five years.
The June storm and flooding also highlighted the impact of long-standing inadequate infrastructure maintenance.
The stormwater drainage system – undermaintained, not extended sufficiently with the growth of the metro, and beset by blockages – simply could not handle the high volumes of water in the short space of time.
Extensive damage to roads – caused in some instances by burst water pipes and worsened by poor road maintenance and repairs – hampered the emergency response, and raised the costs of the flood damage.
It was also not the first time that high waves and storm surges dumped rocks and debris on the N2 in the North End area, causing major disruption for motorists and logistics providers.
Questions have been raised as to whether the dolosse in that area, which have reportedly sunk lower since that storm, are effective enough in their current state, and whether sufficient maintenance, repair and replacement is being performed.
According to both legislation and the general principles of the role of the state, the ultimate responsibility for managing disaster risks and response lies with government.
In the absence of government effectiveness in this responsibility, civil society organisations have stepped in – particularly the Gift of the Givers, and magnificently so – and have become our de facto disaster response.
However, this is not good enough, on two levels.
Firstly, government needs to step up and do its job.
Secondly, organisations such as Gift of the Givers can only respond when disasters happen. It is not their role to anticipate and plan for risks, resource responders and coordinate the multiple role players (although, effectively they do); nor is it their role to undertake the preventative measures such as infrastructure maintenance to minimise future disaster impacts.
Recognising the seriousness of the current state of affairs, the Business Chamber has started the process of establishing a Disaster Management Task Team to ensure that the metro’s disaster management is elevated and adapted to the needs of the metro today and in future.
The task team is recruiting specialists in fields including emergency services, disaster management, risk management and infrastructure.
In the short-term, the team will be looking at improving immediate disaster response – the resources needed, improving collaboration and cooperation, and getting a proper disaster management plan in place.
The longer-term solutions, which need to start urgently, are the preventative measures that need to be undertaken, such as stormwater drain cleaning and maintenance, removal of alien vegetation in river courses, and addressing land-use planning to move people away from vulnerable areas.
The metro’s highest-risk areas for disaster have been identified (in a 2010 assessment) as hydro-meteorological (severe storms and floods) and hazardous material spills, accidental releases and related fires and explosions.
Thus, disaster management planning needs to take account not only of weather-related risks, including mitigation measures in the face of more extreme weather events expected as a result of climate change, but also to assess, audit and map hazardous materials risks in consultation with industrial premises and storage and transport facilities.
We need to develop and raise awareness of disaster risk reduction strategies to build resilience and reduce vulnerability of at-risk communities and environments.
It is a complex issue, with many “moving parts” and multiple role players that need to be working together to the same goal and plan, for integrated, effective risk reduction and response.
It is vital work, because disasters are inevitable. What matters is how we respond.
Christiaan Theron is the Board Task Teams Lead for the Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber and the views expressed are in this capacity.