Infrastructure
Question by:
Hon Aishah Cassiem
Answered by:
Hon Tertuis Simmers
Question Number:
6
Question Body:
With regard to the fire that broke out in the Taiwan Informal Settlement in Site C, Khayelitsha, on Sunday, 22 October 2024, that destroyed 40 shacks and left 90 people destitute:
- Whether any intervention was conducted by his Department to make sure that all those residents – who now remain homeless – found alternative accommodation; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details;
- whether his Department reached out to those residents to check if any matric learners were among them; if not, why not; if so, (a) whether arrangements have been made with their schools or with the Western Cape Education Department to makes sure that they will not be disadvantaged while writing their final examinations and (b) what those arrangements are?
Answer Body:
- When my Department became aware of the Taiwan fire incident, it immediately contacted the City of Cape Town and the National Department of Human Settlements. The reason for this approach is that the immediate emergency response remains the competence of the City of Cape Town’s Risk Disaster Management. The National Department of Human Settlements provides the emergency fire kits, as the competence for the provision of emergency kits during times of disaster has been centralised. The Department was informed by the National Department of Human Settlements that they would attend to the incident on the 23rd of October 2024. However, the Department was also informed that the National Department of Human Settlements had depleted its funds, which would make it difficult to intervene.
- The Department of Education manages learners who are affected during school examinations, as they have full competence and capacity to coordinate school arrangements.
Date:
Thursday, November 14, 2024
