Francesca Villette
AS THE mercury soared yesterday and thousands of people flocked to beaches, swimming pools and outdoor braai areas, most residents of Blikkiesdorp spent the day sitting outside because the heat inside their shacks was unbearable.
Another heatwave has been predicted for today, with the SA Weather Service issuing a fire danger warning.
“A heatwave with persistently high temperatures is expected in places over the Western Cape as well as the southern interior of the Northern Cape,” the warning read.
Blikkiesdorp resident Anton Adams said it was “safer” to be outside where one might catch a light breeze rather than to sweat inside a home made of iron sheets.
Adams and his neighbours spent most of the day sitting under the shade they made by tying a blanket between two houses.
Children filled plastic bottles with water and drenched themselves as the midday temperature reached high into the thirties.
Others sprayed passers-by with water from a hose pipe, while cats and dogs lay around on the hot sand.
“There is no way of escaping the heat, but if you stay inside there, you will choke. I know of many people who have died because of this heat.
“There are no trees, no natural shade, only sand. I am too scared to go inside my own house now,” Adams said.
When winter approached, the opposite applied, Adams said. “It gets so cold that it is like you are going to freeze to death,” he said.
Another resident, Faldiela Snyman, said it was a struggle getting all her seven grandchildren to sleep every night and before bedtime she put cotton wool in their ears. This was to prevent insects from entering their ears, she said.
“These are the worst living conditions anyone could ever imagine and we have to experience it every day. Because of the heat, the fridge motor has to work overtime and now it no longer keeps food fresh. Everything rots,” she said.
Sitting with her two-month-old baby in her arms, Faznoen Moosa said her greatest wish was to one day get a house so that they no longer have to “suffer” in their zinc structure in Blikkiesdorp.
“It does not matter what kind of house it is, as long as it is a safe and comfortable place for me and my children” Moosa said.
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