'It was as if a tornado just lifted everything away’
Residents Lost City, Tafelsig, spent most of Friday July 5 salvaging and fixing their homes after strong winds ripped through the area the night before.
When the Plainsman arrived at the home of Megan Street resident Zane Booysen, the father of 4 children was perched on his roll-up garage door, repairing damages to the door.
Mr Booysen went on a walkabout in his neighbourhood early on Friday morning in search of his missing garage door, front gate and tin roof sheets, which were blown away by strong winds the night before.
The Booysen family were woken from their sleep by a loud sound late on Thursday evening. When Mr Booysen went outside to inspect his property, he saw that several tin roof sheets of the two wendy houses in his backyard had blown off. The window of one of the wendy houses was also shattered.
“It was as if a tornado just lifted everything away. When I opened my door to see what was happening outside, my garage door and front gate were already gone. And I saw the tornado move to the other side,” said Mr Booyson, gesturing towards Tafelberg Road. “This morning I found my garage door in Stacey Street, near Tafelberg Road.”
Mr Booysen’s property was one of 25 homes in the area damaged by harsh winds on Thursday July 4. In Susan Street, pensioner Linda September recalls hearing a loud bang while she was doing dishes. She was at home with her daughter and three grandchildren.
“I just heard my windows shattering. There was a loud bang on my roof and my house started shaking. It was a dreadful sound. When I went outside, I saw the pole laying on my roof and about three wendy houses roofs were laying in my yard, with beams and all. The owners came to fetch their roofs this morning,” Ms September recalled.
Ward 92 Councillor Norman Adonis was notified of the damages by a community leader late on Thursday evening.
“I was told that a wendy house had blown away in Susan Street, that a street pole landed on another resident’s roof, and live overhead electrical wires were hanging in people’s yards.”
When Mr Adonis arrived in Lost City, he discovered that other parts of Tafelsig were affected too, including Hyde Park and Huguenot Primary School.
“The mosque also had damages, as well as in Silver City in 10th, 11th and 12th avenues,” he explained.
Charlotte Powell, spokesperson for the City of Cape Town’s Disaster Risk Management Department, said 113 people were affected by the strong wind gusts.
“We have reached out to the City’s Informal Settlements Management Department and the national Human Settlements Department for assistance with the structural damage caused,” she said.
On Monday evening, Mr Adonis confirmed that SASSA Mitchell’s Plain provided disaster relief in the form of 101 warm meals to Tafelsig residents affected by Thursday night’s strong winds. He said the agency would return the next day to provide them with breakfast, lunch and supper.
Meanwhile, Bronagh Hammond, director of communications for the Western Cape Education Department, said the damages to Huguenot Primary would not affect the return of learners for the new school term.
“The school experienced damage to the sheeting of the roof of the feeding scheme dining area and some classrooms. Repair work began last week. The school is set to open tomorrow as per usual,“ she said on Monday.