The Department of Home Affairs is ready to assist with the replacement of identity documents lost during last week’s devastating floods in KwaZulu-Natal, says the Justice, Crime Prevention and Security (JCPS) Cluster.
Speaking on behalf of the cluster during a briefing on Thursday, Police Minister Bheki Cele said the replacement of documents will be at no cost to the affected communities.
The JCPS said Home Affairs will replace birth certificates, Temporary Identity Certificates, and IDs of people affected by the disaster.
Cele said: “This service is available only to members of communities who have lost their documents during this disaster. Any person who lost their documents at another time will not be covered by this intervention.”
He said Home Affairs is working with the City of eThekwini and the district municipalities of ILembe, Ugu and Umgungundlovu to identify people who need assistance.
Cele said local councillors will verify the names of people supplied to the Disaster Management Operations Centre, after which they will be forwarded to Home Affairs for processing.
Services to some of these communities commenced on Thursday.
Cele said Home Affairs has largely escaped major losses to its infrastructure, with 76 of its 77 offices in KZN fully operational.
Only the Chatsworth office is not currently operational due to flooding. Here, a mobile unit has since been deployed to offer services.
Between 8 and 19 April, the Department of Home Affairs had assisted 28 217 people.
Source: South African Government News Agency