Afterwards, residents lined the streets looking at their damaged homes.Another pic after cut...
Supra Mahumapelo, North West premier, said that at least 400 houses had been damaged in the earthquake in the area. The quake was felt in most parts of South Africa.
Although other parts of the North West were affected by the earthquake and aftershock, Mahumapelo said Khuma was the worst-affected.
He said, “The preliminary report is that the problem is bigger in Matlosana.”
Mahumapelo was in a meeting in Mahikeng when he felt the earthquake, and buildings were evacuated. When he heard of the destruction, he rushed to see the damage first hand, adding that it was the government’s responsibility to aid those who were affected.
He said, “It is the responsibility of government to make sure we take care of our people. I have spoken to the Matlosana municipality along with the provincial departments of safety, local government and finances to see how best the people can be assisted.”
Mahumapelo assured two women whose homes were destroyed that the government would provide a place for them and their families to sleep, and added that a plan would be decided upon to rebuilt their homes and lives.
He added that he had spoken to the Presidency, who were speaking with experts to see if South Africa would be able to deal with a larger earthquake if that eventuality occurred. He said, “To be honest, you can never be ready for such a thing. The important thing is to accommodate those affected and it is our responsibility to make sure we assist them.”
Malehlohonolo Mosai, who has 10 children, said they would not be staying in their two-bedroom RDP home, as the walls were cracked and the roof had come loose. She told Sapa, “This house is not safe. It is very scary. We cannot sleep in here.”
She said they would sleep in a shack behind the home. When the quake struck, Mosai was with a two-year-old toddler in the house. “I felt the house shaking. I grabbed the little one and tried to run outside but bricks fell on top of me. There was dust everywhere in the house and the doors would not open.”
Mosai was also unemployed, and relied on state grants, so did not know how she would repair her home.
Sonwabile Klaas was at work during the quake or the aftershock, but when she arrived at her home, she saw it had come off the foundation, and an outside room had collapsed completely.
She told Sapa, “It was though someone lifted my house and pushed it to the side.
“The back room was completely destroyed and my house has cracks everywhere.”
She said she immediately thought of all the people working in the mines when she heard that houses in the area were destroyed.
She is also not sure what she should do with her home, as she did not think it was safe to stay in.
Meanwhile, three clinics in Klerksdorp had been damaged in the quake. The North West health department spokesperson Tebogo Lekgethwane told Sapa, “Two of the clinics are completely shut down after severe structural damage.”
Stilfontein Clinic and Parkstreet Clinic in Klerksdorp were shut down.
The third clinic was at a mine in Stilfontein, and renovations had already begun on it. It was expected to be fully repaired by Wednesday.
Lekgethwane said, “As a temporary measure the department has arranged to ferry patients to nearby health facilities through the use of shuttle buses.”
The clinics would receive a visit from health MEC Magome Masike on Wednesday, who would assess the damage.
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