KZN shows solidarity with Chennai victims

eThekwini Speaker Logie Naidoo has expressed support to the people of Chennai, in the wake of the devastating floods.

Durban - eThekwini Speaker, Logie Naidoo has expressed support to the people of southeastern Indian city, Chennai, in the wake of the devastating floods that have stricken the people of this city.

In a message of support, the city of Durban has called upon South Africans to join in and do their part in aiding the stricken people of Chennai.

In an Interview with Independent Online on Monday, Logie Naidoo expressed his condolences to people in Chennai who have lost loved ones and expressed sadness at the unfortunate situation that currently plagues these people.

Naidoo said that, as South Africans, we share a history with Chennai as the first indentured labourers came from Chennai and, with the history of adversity that South Africa had, we should look to assist Chennai during this calamity so that we can see a brighter future for the people of Chennai. Appeals for assistance, in any form, have been made.

As compared to the massive flooding that hit India in 1918 yielding 1088mm of rainfall in November 1918, the November and December 2015 rains have yielded in excess on 1049mm of rainfall with rains still persisting. Over 500 people are confirmed dead and more than 1.8 million people have been displaced by the flooding.

“We have seen pictures of people neck high in water as Chennai is ravaged by this natural disaster. However, in the face of adversity, we see people coming together to embody what humanity really is. There have been demonstrations of courage and kindness, with stories of people offering sanctuary to victims of the Chennai floods regardless of race, culture or faith,” said Naidoo.

Relief efforts are underway with Bangalore, the USA, Nepal, Singapore, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Malaysia, Iran and France making concerted efforts to offer assistance and resources to the stricken people of Chennai.

“There have been stories of Hindu people offering refuge to Muslim people and making provisions for these people to have prayer mats and meals to eat, even when such people do not have much to offer. It is an example that we, as South Africans, must enshrine and attempt to do our part to help the devastated people of Chennai,” said Naidoo.

For the first time since its founding in 1878, Indian newspaper The Hindu were unable to produce a print copy of the paper due to the difficulty encountered by staff in getting to work. Automobile companies, Nissan, Renault, Daimler AG and Ford had to temporarily suspend production due to the severity of the flooding.

People in Chennai have shown true humanity by offering assistance to victims over social media and people have offered to accommodate those seeking refuge from the floods. An Indian taxi service has even chipped in by offering a service of rescuing stranded people in Chennai and enabling communication to be made via Facebook. So far, more than 1.1 million people have been rescued with still many more people displaced or affected.

On 2 December 2015, the flooding in Chennai was declared officially as being a state of emergency, with appeals for relief efforts being made to any countries that can assist.

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