Kouga Municipality to declare local state of disaster

The Kouga Municipality in the Eastern Cape is preparing to declare a local state of disaster following days of torrential rains that devastated parts of the Gamtoos Valley.

At least 40 residents who were trapped in Kingsway Village were evacuated after the Gamtoos River burst its banks, flooding homes, roads and surrounding farmland.

Hundreds more residents from affected communities across the Kouga, Kou-Kamma and Nelson Mandela Bay regions sought shelter at community halls over the past few days as floodwaters swept through low-lying areas.

While the full extent of the damage is still being assessed, early estimates suggest that the losses to homeowners and farmers in the Gamtoos River Valley alone could amount to hundreds of millions of rands.

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