Major restoration operation at Luederitz

LUDERITZ started picking up the pieces yesterday after the coastal town was hit with more rain in a weekend than it usually receives in five years.

During last week, the harbour town recorded around 140 mm of rain, an amount that proved too much for the town’s storm-water drainage system, which usually has to handle only about 17 mm per year. Luederitz Town Council Public Relations Officer Shali Akwaanyenga said yesterday that the council was mobilising all its resources to get things back in order at the town.Most of the 50 families who evacuated their homes after the sudden rains had returned to their homes by yesterday, Akwaanyenga said.But the council still had to decide on the future of residents from the town’s washed-away Area 7 informal settlement, who had been moved to temporary shelters.Council repaired damaged sewage lines to the town’s prison for the second time in a week yesterday.Town engineer Arnold Koellmann reported yesterday afternoon that he was to start a damage-assessment report later in the day, while residents and the municipality had been busy cleaning streets and pumping water from houses.”There are about ten houses where water has come in through the ground floor, which may might need a lot of repairing,” Koellmann said about whether insurance claims were likely to roll in within the next few weeks.Members of the insurance industry spoken to yesterday said that they were prepared for flood claims, but added that they weren’t expecting near as much as after the recent Mariental floods.”It’s going to be less than Mariental, although it’s just as unfortunate,” Santam Financial Manager Franco Feris said.Council PRO Akwaanyenga added that not many outsiders had stepped in to help normalise the situation at the town yet, but said that in all fairness it had only been three days into the process of rebuilding.The Namibia Red Cross’s Risk Reduction Coordinator, Christian Wimmerth, said yesterday that the organisation was in the process of assessing the damage at the town, after which it might send representatives from Windhoek to help volunteers at Luederitz.According to the town council, most of the damage caused by last weekend’s rains was to the roads, including the main road and many of the town’s gravel roads which have been washed away.Damage to the town’s industrial road alone has been estimated at between N$200 000 and N$250 000.Luederitz Town Council Public Relations Officer Shali Akwaanyenga said yesterday that the council was mobilising all its resources to get things back in order at the town.Most of the 50 families who evacuated their homes after the sudden rains had returned to their homes by yesterday, Akwaanyenga said.But the council still had to decide on the future of residents from the town’s washed-away Area 7 informal settlement, who had been moved to temporary shelters.Council repaired damaged sewage lines to the town’s prison for the second time in a week yesterday.Town engineer Arnold Koellmann reported yesterday afternoon that he was to start a damage-assessment report later in the day, while residents and the municipality had been busy cleaning streets and pumping water from houses.”There are about ten houses where water has come in through the ground floor, which may might need a lot of repairing,” Koellmann said about whether insurance claims were likely to roll in within the next few weeks.Members of the insurance industry spoken to yesterday said that they were prepared for flood claims, but added that they weren’t expecting near as much as after the recent Mariental floods.”It’s going to be less than Mariental, although it’s just as unfortunate,” Santam Financial Manager Franco Feris said.Council PRO Akwaanyenga added that not many outsiders had stepped in to help normalise the situation at the town yet, but said that in all fairness it had only been three days into the process of rebuilding. The Namibia Red Cross’s Risk Reduction Coordinator, Christian Wimmerth, said yesterday that the organisation was in the process of assessing the damage at the town, after which it might send representatives from Windhoek to help volunteers at Luederitz.According to the town council, most of the damage caused by last weekend’s rains was to the roads, including the main road and many of the town’s gravel roads which have been washed away.Damage to the town’s industrial road alone has been estimated at between N$200 000 and N$250 000.