Restoring water and electricity supply in flood-hit Riverlands a priority - WC MEC Bredell

CAPE TOWN - Western Cape Disaster Management MEC Anton Bredell said officials would prioritise the restoration of water and electricity supply in Riverlands, near Malmesbury, on Monday.

This comes after the minister of water and sanitation, Pemmy Majodina, on Sunday visited the flood-affected community to assess the extent of the damage.

ALSO READ: Owner of collapsed Riverlands dams should have known about the risk - Majodina

Many residents have been dependent on humanitarian assistance for water since three dams collapsed its walls last week.

The disaster left over 50 households destroyed.

"The first priority was to safeguard the lives of people, and they're busy with that still. There's a fourth dam that they monitor on an hourly basis to see to it that it's safe - that's a high priority," said Bredell. 

"The second priority is to, obviously, look at the needs of the affected people. They have been housed into halls in this community - Gift of the Givers, Lion's Club, Red Cross, everybody, the community has stepped in."