Durban - Seasoned to disasters in the past year, a South Durban community is formalising an evacuation plan.
The Merewent Community Foundation yesterday brought together local industry, police, the fire department, politicians, teachers and faith leaders and community security volunteers to seek their input.
They hope to have reached memorandums of understanding with stakeholders within a week, before adopting a final evacuation plan.
The meeting heard that, particularly from the experience of the floods, it was important to have vulnerable people, such as the disabled and elderly, on a database.
“Often, they can be left. An old lady was found with a fridge having fallen on her in a house beside a canal that flooded in 10 minutes,” said “Rasta” Deonath, an executive member.
Communication between homes was also important.
“It’s important to inform neighbours. Some may be still asleep. Some did not know they were floating on their beds.”
The meeting hoped that the Merewent Community Foundation and local industries and other entities would end up on the same page.
There had been no blueprint for an evacuation plan from any authority and the community had to organise itself in their own way since looting, exactly a year ago. However, no evacuation was needed then, but entrance and exit points were manned.
The meeting discussed how utilities such as a local mosque could be approached to make announcements, rather than volunteers walking around with loud-hailers.
A DA PR representative said that during the floods, the disaster management of the eThekwini authorities was a disaster in itself, with phone lines not responding timeously. Multiple lines were needed.
Other tips raised were that during the chaos of an evacuation, homes were the most vulnerable to looting.
Traffic control was also essential at evacuation assembly points, where traffic congestion problems were not needed on top of human congestion problems.
The meeting heard about the importance of each individual having an Emergency Go Bag.
This could contain all sorts of useful things, from ID to medication, to a torch, to toilet paper, to a jacket, to matches or a lighter.
The Independent on Saturday