A body was discovered in a blocked drain at the intersection of Mitchell Avenue and Herba Road in Mitchells Plain on Thursday afternoon.
Also read: Western Cape considers state of disaster amid severe weather
The City of Cape Town reported that their water and sanitation maintenance team was addressing a blocked sewer in Woodlands when they found the body.
‘While attempting to unblock the sewer line, the team discovered a body. They immediately contacted SAPS, who then took over the scene to retrieve the body,’ said the City. The team has since been offered counselling.
Western Cape police spokesperson Captain FC van Wyk stated that an inquest docket was opened after the ‘badly decomposed body’ was found. The race, age, and gender of the deceased remain unknown.
Lynn Phillips of the Cape Flats Safety Forum and community activist said residents were ‘disturbed’ by the news.
‘It is unclear whose body it is or if there was a missing person reported to the police, so no one knows who was pulled from the drain. There is speculation it could be a homeless person, as they sometimes sleep in drains to avoid bad weather,’ Phillips noted. She described the discovery as ‘heartbreaking.’
Earlier, it was reported that another incident where a man’s body was retrieved from a canal in Blackheath after he slipped and fell while walking near the corners of Range and Stellenbosch Arterial Roads. The roads were flooded at the time.
Western Cape police spokesperson Warrant Officer Joseph Swartbooi said SAPS and fire and rescue divers searched the area where the person was last seen, ultimately retrieving the man’s body. The victim was declared deceased at the scene by medical personnel.
The Western Cape has been experiencing severe weather, with heavy rain and gusty winds causing flooding. At least 15 000 people have been displaced and about 14 000 structures damaged. The SA Weather Service issued a Level 4 warning for disruptive rain from Friday into the weekend, predicting 20 to 55mm of rain.
The affected areas include the City of Cape Town, Bergrivier, Cederberg, Drakenstein, Stellenbosch, Swartland, Theewaterskloof, and Witzenberg. The City’s emergency call centre received over 330 calls during the storms.
Between 6pm on Wednesday and 6am on Thursday, the City’s Public Emergency Communication Centre (PECC) logged 339 incidents.
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Picture: ER Lombard / Gallo Images