KwaZulu-Natal is fast becoming a bona fide natural disaster zone, with ongoing violent and extreme weather patterns raising serious concerns. From the devastating floods of 2022 to last year’s surprise snowstorm, followed again by more flooding incidents between February 2025 and now, the tourism destination is not catching a break.
More than 20 lives have been lost recently, and a devastating loss estimated at R3.1bn in damages has been the outcome.
In response to the ongoing inclement weather, the government has declared a national state of disaster, which is a welcome move. However, these disasters we see in the province are only the beginning as global warming is fast moving from being a subject of awareness to one that requires immediate steps and practical reactions to the situation.
We simply cannot afford for this to be another topic discussed without action and it just ends in conversation. There is an urgent need for reform in how we build, maintain and protect infrastructure that is susceptible to damage during heavy rains — roads being one key area. In a week where we have seen harrowing car accidents in the news, we are reminded that road safety and global warming effects are intertwined.
During the 2023 Easter holidays, a woman driving from Johannesburg to visit her relatives in Durban died after she unknowingly drove into an open hole after a bridge collapsed in Ntuzuma.
This week, minister of transport Barbara Creecy acknowledged that extreme weather conditions have not been rare occurrences, they have become a new reality. Our road networks have become vulnerable, we see the exposure of poor investment over decades in maintenance, mismanagement and to a devastating degree, planning.
She said there was a need for the country to take a “climate-proof” approach to the road system.
“What we recognise is transport infrastructure is going to be increasingly hammered by extreme weather events [in future] and we need to ensure we are not just repairing roads but taking steps to prevent recurring damage.
“This is a work in progress.”
Acknowledging is one thing, but doing the work another. Though hazardous occurrences are the ones highlighting the dire situation, she should get to work. Across provinces, bridges are collapsing, highways are slowly crumbling and there are more potholes than tar. In Juskei Park, Randburg, a bridge has become a cause for concern for residents. The Platina Bridge was devastated and dismantled by recent floods, but the damage started years ago.
Each pothole, collapsed bridge, neglected road, poor road marking and poor drainage system should be seen as a potential death sentence
On the subject of road infrastructure maintenance, it is unacceptable that the Johannesburg Roads Agency has admitted that it failed to do extensive assessments of the city’s bridges for nine years.
More concerning is that municipalities religiously divert funds meant for road maintenance to other “priorities” or channel unspent monies back to the National Treasury every year. Global warming was always coming, it should not be a shock that we are here. Fancy titles and lack of planning are inexcusable now, heads must roll; lives are being lost daily because of systemic neglect and a lack of urgency — even with all the knowledge.
At some point, the government needs to recognise that patching up roads with subpar workmanship and watching them disintegrate in the next storm is not the solution, but climate-proofing our systems is the way. There is a need for the implementation of engineering solutions that are climate-conscious, proper reinforcement of roads and bridges and the development of excellent drainage systems that can withstand harsh weather conditions. If we do anything less, surely we would be inviting further destruction.
The urgency of solutions cannot be overstated. Road fatalities, people being displaced and lives destroyed and lost make this a pressing matter. The link is undeniable. Each pothole, collapsed bridge, neglected road, poor road marking and poor drainage system should be seen as a potential death sentence. The admission by Creecy that the road conditions signal a disaster in the making should not be taken lightly. Road safety is not an abstract ideal, it is necessary for survival.
For opinion and analysis consideration, e-mail Opinions@timeslive.co.za
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