Three years after the catastrophic April 2022 floods in KwaZulu-Natal, first responders share their harrowing experiences and the vital lessons learned from one of the province’s most devastating natural disasters.
According to a study by Professor Stefan Grab and Professor David Nash from Wits University, which reconstructed the history of floods in KZN since the 1840s, the April 2022 floods were likely the most catastrophic natural disaster yet recorded in KZN in terms of the more than 400 lives lost, homes and infrastructure damaged or destroyed, and economic impact.
The KZN Department of Economic Development and Tourism and Environmental Affairs stated that research data indicated that eThekwini Metro was the most severely affected.
The unprecedented disaster struck in the second week of April 2022 and since then the province continues to be battered by floods and other natural disasters. First responders continue to put their lives on the line to help and rescue others.
Challenges faced during the floods
Reaction Unit South Africa (Rusa) spokesperson Prem Balram, who drove a vehicle on the first night of the flooding and then piloted a helicopter thereafter to assist with rescues, said he recalls the difficulties of the first night.
“The calls were coming into the control centre by the hundreds. I think about 169 calls came through within the first few hours from people seeking assistance,” he said.
Balram said they had to mobilise all members, including those who were off duty and on leave, to assist the general public and the SAPS throughout KZN.
“It was a very hectic night. It went on throughout the night and for several days after that. We had to work assisting in rescues, transporting bodies, and flying over areas where there were people who were swept out to sea,” he said.
The emotional toll on first responders
He said the biggest challenge was getting members to remote areas that were inaccessible to vehicles, and there was nowhere to land the helicopter.
“It was challenging to deploy members on foot, get paramedics in and out, and equipment with the aircraft, and generally, getting to these locations was a huge challenge for us,” he said.
Balram said his lowest moment was the psychological impact of transporting a decomposing body found in a tree approximately three metres above the ground in a very rural area.
Now, every time it rains, Balram said the anxiety and stress resurface. “Every time it rains, I simply get up and I put my uniform on, I put my equipment on, and I mobilise my members so there are no delays.”
“I think we overthink this because generally people were not prepared for the flooding we had, and I tend to now over prepare, even for the slightest rain,” he said.
IPSS Medical Rescue spokesperson Samantha Meyrick said the extent of the April 2022 floods was not expected, and no one was prepared for it.
“As always, our first responders never hesitated to rush out, risking their own safety to help those in need. Often, the most incredible moments during these natural disasters are the community coming together, working beside first responders. Sadly, the memories that haunt first responders will be those they couldn’t help when they had to stand back for their own safety or those they couldn’t reach,” she said.
Meyrick recalled how some members could not get home for a few days and how the admin staff cooked meals for all those stuck at the base and involved in assisting in efforts.
She said for most of their members, the April 2022 floods are a blur.
Notable incidents and challenges
IPSS Medical Rescue operations manager Keith Pillay said he recalls the first incident they attended to in oThongathi, where a family was washed away in a vehicle, and due to the unsafe conditions, no one was authorised to intervene.
He also remembers the eight-hour recovery to find a tenant who died in a structural collapse in Stanger, as well as an elderly couple who had to exit their vehicle and climb a tree because they could not access them.
According to IPSS, two members, Rodney Meyrick and Shane Ferrie, were forced to sleep in their vehicle on the N2 highway because the Umdloti River had submerged the bridge, and their vehicle was almost washed away.
“Their vehicle almost got washed away,” said IPSS Medical Rescue Advanced Life Support Paramedic, Kelsey Shone.
Shone said it was disheartening because they could not access many areas to help people initially.
She said at one point while responding to an incident on the M4 at night, she was unaware of a section of the road/bridge that had been washed away and nearly drove straight off.
“We now all have Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) at the mention of a cut-off low. Whenever something like that is mentioned now, everyone is on edge,” said Shone.
Collaboration and community efforts
Marshall Security was heavily involved in the 2022 flood relief efforts, according to Andreas Mathias of the organisation’s community support.
Their work was concentrated in and around the Durban North and uMhlanga areas, but they also extended their efforts into kwaMashu and surrounding rural areas.
Mathias recalls that working during that period was extremely exhausting and how they were forced to fight on so many different fronts.
“We worked long hours, probably in the vicinity of between 30 and 35 hours, with a short two-hour break in between, and then we were back on duty as soon as we had some rest,” he said.
He said some members even had damage to their own properties but chose to help other people rather than worry about their own situation. “This was a community that was in need, and they needed us at that time, so we stood firm as a team.”
“What was also amazing was how the community came together to provide us with meals and hot coffee and sustenance during our cycle of operations.”
Lessons learned for future preparedness
The primary challenge that hindered their ability to carry out their duties, according to Mathias, was the extensive nature of the flooding, particularly in Umdloti.
He said the situation was constantly evolving, and the focus shifted from natural disasters to man-made issues in the areas where they were operating.
“We couldn’t get to certain areas because we were cut off. Roads were being washed away. Bridges had been damaged and were unsafe for us to travel. And then, of course, we had the continuous rain that just never ceased,” he said.
It was all hands on deck for the duration of the flooding, Mathias recalled. However, he said they collaborated with various networks, including START Rescue and Netcare 911 paramedics, to overcome these obstacles.
During the floods, Sergeant Busisiwe Mjwara and K9 Leah, a police dog, died tragically while searching for flood victims in the Msunduzi River in KwaZulu-Natal.
Mathias remembers seeing Mjwara and her canine leave on the day she died from Virginia Airport, where the Joint Operations Committee (JOC) was set up as a hub for coordinating relief efforts.
“I was supposed to leave on a flight just before that one, and I got back in the afternoon after flying over the damaged and devastated area, and she never came back… It was one of the lowest points for me, where we actually lost a rescuer who put her life on the line for the community,” he said.
He said they were able to use the negative experiences from the floods, with the assistance of trauma debriefing, to help prepare them for other disasters.
“We’re on the ground, and every flood, every disaster that we face every single day, it’s just us making that effort and pushing through those barriers to save a life… we keep the negativity of what has happened in the past, and we focus on saving lives and doing what we do best,” he said.
Mathias said they have learned to be prepared and ready at all times and now carries extra bottles of water as well as extra rescue equipment for dogs.
He added that community support is paramount to Marshall Security’s success.
Abed Karrim of the Al-Imdaad Foundation said he was working during that period when the organisation started reaching out to people on the ground.
“In my personal experience, when I looked at the victims, there was total hopelessness in their eyes and the look on their face was, Where to now? What do we do? We have lost everything. Some of us have lost loved ones, buried under homes, buried under sand, under rubble, washed away,” he said.
Karrim said the coordination of the response was a challenge in terms of determining where the greatest need was, where people were taken, which halls, etc.
“We had to identify the greatest need and ways emergency response needed to be given, and so forth. Because, remember, there were so many areas, not forgetting the rural parts of Durban, the urban parts, the informal settlements, the normal areas everywhere, things were all washed away,” he said.
He noted that capacity was also a challenge and that Al-Imdaad worked with eThekwini Disaster Management to work around the challenges.
“We tried our best to make sure to work around it and make sure we identified where the most important and needy areas were to respond,” he said.
Karrim added that the most difficult experience he recalled during this time was visiting a house where children had been playing in the yard and were subsequently buried by sand and rubble from the overflowing river behind the yard.
Moving forward: Recommendations for future disasters
Karrim said as a result of this major flood, the Al-Imdaad Foundation has learned that it is crucial for the different informal settlements to be prepared.
“There must be coordinators, people who are able to identify and know where the families stay,” he said.
He said the City’s disaster management also needs to get more personnel for emergency services coordination.
“There has to be a multi-sectoral response and preparedness in terms of how we are going to respond in times of floods and other disasters…There have to be teams that are ready for this kind of response,” he said, emphasising the necessity of a rapid response to the various affected areas.
Karrim recommended a multi-sectoral meeting for all stakeholders to clarify roles, response times, and the types of interventions NGOs should provide during floods and other natural disasters.
“It is very important that there is standardisation of the various interventions and that in terms of food, the different dietary requirements of different race groups need to be understood,” he said.
Karrim also stated that there should be no duplication of services provided.
In addition, he noted that there is a lack of both male and female volunteers during disasters. “We do not have enough personnel in disaster management to assist and coordinate so in each area, we should have volunteers who are given capacity, the know-how, what to look for, and what to do as the first responder because they stay within the community.”
Rusa spokesperson, Prem Balram, called for disaster management, search and rescue, both private and government, to act more swiftly.
He said there should be a system in place to evacuate low-lying areas such as floodplains and people living along the rivers and dams.
“Much more lives could have been saved if we had a system in place to evacuate, send out early warning messages asking people to evacuate instead of spending more time on rescuing.
“If we can get our services, private and government, to be on standby on days that we expect flooding and excessive rain, we could be on scene quicker, and we can save many more lives, as opposed to just recovering bodies in future,” said Balram.
