Chairperson, hon members, one writer says there was an earthquake in Japan, where one of the cities was buried underground. After that happening, the mayor called those who survived to recreate that city.
We have experienced a similar thing in the North West province. This province experienced heavy flooding of certain areas. These floods were caused by two main factors, namely heavy rainfalls and also the run-off of the rainwater in the catchment areas in Gauteng. The second of these has caused the greater amounts of damage so far. The majority of the flooding took place in the Brits area from the Hartbeespoort Dam along the Crocodile River to the boundary with the Northern Province. The actions in this area were controlled by the joint operations centre formed at the Brits fire department under the control of the disaster management officer of the Brits town council.
The following incidents took place: loss of life, injuries, loss of stock and loss of crops. Therefore there was no electricity supply to the Vaalkop and Beestekraal areas, there was no communication, and the sewerage system in the Vaalkop, Brits and Oukasie rural areas have been flooded and extensively damaged. But we should thank those authorities that have joined hands to come to the rescue of many people who suffered during this time. We thank the welfare organisations in Brits and surrounding areas, the traffic department, the Departments of Health, Public Works and Transport, the disaster management authorities and the National Parks Board for joining hands to rescue those who were hopelessly looking for help and assistance.
We as the NCOP have to applaud those people, who did a very good job, and the joining of hands, even amidst the joint problems which we may face, of national, provincial and local government, is of extreme importance. [Applause.]