The City is planning legal action against those who have built homes illegally on top of municipal infrastructure in Dunoon and other parts of the city, says mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis.
Heavy winter rains and storms have left a trail of flooding, damage and misery across the city in the past week.
When Mr Hill-Lewis visited Dunoon on Tuesday July 9 to check the damage there, he found knee-deep water in Dumani Road, which has RDP houses.
According to Mr Hill-Lewis, the flooding was caused by “illegal shacks” built over the City infrastructure because municipal staff were unable to reach drains and pipes to flush the flood waters.
Dunoon residents had had to leave their homes and seek temporary shelter elsewhere because their homes had been badly damaged by the flooding, he said.
The court process would be lengthy but would hopefully prevent a repeat of the flooding in the area during next winter, he said.
“It’s important to remember that illegal occupations create challenges for maintaining our city’s infrastructure. We should protect the municipal infrastructure and make sure that it is not illegally occupied as it affects each and every one of us,” he said.
Thobelo Lebeko, a resident of Siyabonga Street in Dunoon, said he and his four children had had to leave the area on Monday July 8 due to flooding that had seen raw sewage swamping streets and homes in the area.
He said people allowed their families and friends to put up shacks, and they charged rent, which, in most cases, was their only income.
