NEWS16 July 2010 Page 3
Green expo:last chance THE deadline for theSustainable City Exhibition,being organised by theImagine Durban programmehas been extended untilMonday (19 July).
The exhibition aims toencourage locals to live andwork sustainably.
The show, at the DurbanExhibition Centre, from 13 to15 August, will cover issueslike energy efficiency, waterconservation, renewableenergy and organicgardening.
Application forms can bedowloaded fromwww.imaginedurban.org/exhibitor or call 031 311 4277
Pigeon Valley:plants wantedTHE Friends of Pigeon Valleyis appealing for donations ofindigenous plants, forreplanting at the naturalbeauty spot in Glenwood.
Crispin Hemson, of theFriends, said they wereespecially interested inindigenous trees and shrubsthat often spring up insuburban gardens, seededby birds. Contact him [email protected] or082 926 5333.
Learn how todraw plantsTHE Botanical ArtistsAssociation of SouthernAfrica are presenting adrawing with pen and inkworkshop at the DurbanBotanic Gardens tomorrow(Saturday, 17 July).
The workshop, at thegarden’s Discovery room,will be led by Carol LeeBeckx and is suitable forbeginners and moreexperienced artists.
Call 031 266 3082,072 337 5142 or [email protected] .
Furniturefactory saleTHE Furniture TechnologyCentre Trust (Furntech) willhost a factory sale tomorrow(17 July) from 8am to 1pmat 63 Willowfield Crescent,Springfield
Furntech is an incubatorfor small businesses in thefurniture and wood productmanufacturing industry.
On sale will be furniture,wooden trays, choppingboards, rolling pins andbathroom cabinets.
Art gallery on the ballTime_Frame, an exhibitionwhich explores theintersection of space, placeand people in the context ofthe World Cup, is showing atthe Durban Art Gallery untilMonday (19 July).Another football themedexhibition, Art of the Ball,drawn from the gallery’scollection closes on August2. For more details, call 031 311 2262.
IN BRIEF
LEGENDARY conservationistDr Ian Player will be the guestspeaker at the AGM of theBotanical Society of SA (KZNCoastal Branch) on Sunday,25 July.
He will talk on Conservationand the Human Spirit, at themeeting, to be held at theBotanic Gardens Visitors’Centre, John Zikhali (formerlySydenham) Road at 3pm.
Player was instrumental inpioneering efforts to save thewhite rhino and founded theWildnerness LeadershipSchool. For more details, seewww.ianplayer.com . – MetroReporter
S’CELO KHUZWAYO
THE eThekwini Municipality’sDisaster Management Unitplayed a leading role inproviding relief to victims ofthe fire that recently guttedsome 600 shacks at theKennedy Road informalsettlement.
Emergency workers were onthe scene within seven min-utes of the fire being reported.
About 2 000 people were leftdestitute and two lost theirlives.
The Unit bouyed survivorsby organising blankets, food,
tents and other items.Chairperson for Health,
Safety and Social ServicesCommittee, Councillor Nom-vuzo Shabalala, said thevictims were also given build-ing materials, water andsanitation.
Disaster Management’sMalcolm Canham said theyhad worked with non-govern-mental organisations andcompanies.
Initial media reports blamedthe fire on illegal electricityconnections but authoritiesmaintained that the cause wasstill unknown and that
investigations were ongoing.“After the fire we conducted
an assessment of the extent ofthe damage. Unfortunately westill don’t know the exactcause of the fire, but a candleis suspected to have been thecause,” Conham said.
Local Government MECNomsa Dube visited the areasoon after the fire and wasquoted as saying that somepeople in the area had refusedto move to other places likeRiverdene, Newlands East andMount Moriah, where houseshad been built.
Dube’s spokesman, Lennox
Mabaso said they were con-cerned about the regular firesat Kennedy Road, but hepraised the Municipality forresponding so quickly to theemergency.
“This is a leading Muni-cipality when it comes tobuilding houses. This is whythe numbers of people livingwithin its borders increases allthe time,” Mabaso said.
He said the Department wasworking with the Muni-cipality, to find a permanentsolution to the Kennedy Roadfire problem.
MUSA MTHALANE, NONDU NGCONGO andSAMKELO MTSHALI
HUNDREDS of needychildren and elderly peoplewill be warmer this winterthanks to donation ofblankets, gloves and hats.
The Municipality and theOffice of the Premier’sOperation Winter Warmthcoordinated donations fromthe Al-Imdaad Foundationand the Minara Chamber ofCommerce.
In Chesterville, Chief Whip,Councillor Fawzia Peer, said,“My special thanks goes toour partners for warming thecommunity of Ward 24, sincemost of the people in thisward cannot afford to buy the
things they need to keepthem warm.”
Ward 24 resident NomsaNdawonde said, “I thankCouncillor Peer, theMunicipality and the Al-Imdaad Foundation forkeeping us warm this winter.
“Most of us cannot afford tobuy these things because weare not working.”
Others benefiting fromOperation Winter Warmthincluded Mthande RichmondFarm Service Centre, IlungeloLabadala Children, ClermontChild Youth Care Centre, StVincent Orphanage,Marianhill Streetwise Shelter,Zakhe Place of Safety inKwaDabeka, ZamaZulu OldAge Home in KwaMashu, andAdams Shelter.
Thoko Xulu, Manager ofSocial Development in theHealth Unit, said, “We werealready helping homelesspeople with shelter andgroceries and thought itwould be good to givesomething to homes for theelderly and children.”
She said people in otherareas would benefit too.
Mandela Day“We will continue this
programme until Sunday,Mandela Day, when we willspend the 67 minutes wiselyby helping another home,”said Xulu.
Speaking at Zakhe, Al-Imdaad Project CoordinatorAbed Karrim said, “We are
proud to have been able toput smiles on the faces ofchildren and elderly people.
“We are thankful to theOffice of the Premier and theMunicipality for this projectthat helps young people tohave a place of safety to growand become better people.”
Zakhe Facility ManagerNokuthula Phakathi said, “Ithank this partnership forhelping us look after thesechildren.”
Hundred-year-old NomlovaDuma, of ZamaZulu, said itwas heartwarming to see theMunicipality and sponsorstaking care of them.
[email protected]@durban.gov.za
[email protected] See Page 4
Blanket gifts bring winter warmthGOOD CHEER: Chief Whip, Councillor Fawzia Peer joins Chesterville residents for a handover of winter woolies
Picture: JESSIE SINGH
ROMITA HANUMAN
IF YOU have received a formwith your electricity bill titledRevenue Information Assess-ment, make sure you fill it in,attach a copy of your ID ordrivers licence, and send itback.
Deputy City Manager: Treas-ury, Krish Kumar, said, “Weneed to get all the necessary,
updated information fromour customers. This is toensure we have a betterrelationship with our cus-tomers and to update theMunicipality’s database.”
The documents are beingposted to customers with
their utilities bills. They arebeing asked to fill them out,attach a copy of their ID ordriver’s licence and drop themoff in the relevant box at theirnearest Sizakala Centre.
Trained officials will becoming around to gather the
information in certain areaswhere necessary, includingrural areas in eThekwini.
Due to the size of theproject, service providers wereappointed through a publictender process, and they havedeveloped a data system, will
capture all data, and provide acall centre for queries as wellas analyse the data collected.
The Treasury has urged thepublic to meet the 31 Augustdeadline.
For more information, call031 328 1100, visit www.durban.gov.za, e-mail [email protected] or fax031 328 1101.
THEMBA KHUMALO
SURVIVORS of fires, floods orother disasters will be betteroff thanks to a donation ofcamping equipment worthmore than R1-million byAustralian soccer fans whostayed in Durban during theWorld Cup.
City Manager MichaelSutcliffe and head of theStrategic Projects Unit Julie-May Ellingson took deliveryof 100 tents, 200 beds,matresses and sets of linen,and 100 fire buckets andextinguishers at the SaharaStadium Kingsmead recently.
The Australian World Cupsupporters’ camp used all ofthis equipment during theirstay at the stadium.
Mayor Obed Mlaba,speaking later, said, “We aregrateful for this generousdonation by the Australiansupporters.
“They are among thousandsof international visitors whochose Durban as a base fortheir stay during the WorldCup. These goods will be usedto help the poor and victimsof disasters.”
Mlaba said internationalvisitors had praised theorganisation of the World Cupin Durban.
“Our fan parks, thetransport system and otherplaces of interest have beencommended by our guests.This donation is one of themany tangible benefits thathave accrued from hostingthe World Cup,” he said.
Sutcliffe said theMunicipality had set asidehalf of the equipment to helpinformal settlement residents,who were often displacedfrom their homes.
The local branch of theScouts Association of SouthAfrica would use the rest ofthe equipment.
Kennedy Road fire:quick relief for victims
Oz tenttown goesto goodcause
Treasury wants your details
Ian Player totop bill at AGM
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