PRETORIA, Jan 19 (NNN-SANEWS) — Government has announced the establishment of the Kruger Relief Fund to assist efforts to rebuild the Kruger National Park after heavy rainfall damaged the popular tourist destination.
Limpopo and Mpumalanga – where the park is situated – have been battered by persistent rainfall and subsequent flooding over the past week with loss of life and infrastructure damage reported.
“I am pleased to announce that SANParks have committed to establishing the Kruger Relief Fund to help with rebuilding efforts, emergency supplies and any other necessities,” Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Willie Aucamp, said.
The fund will be managed and audited by two independent auditing firms.
“In order to start to rebuild the Kruger National Park, we will need money and we have decided to create a Kruger Relief Fund. The fund will be formed by independent auditors…that will manage that fund. We will, in time over the next week, give more information on that fund.”
The Minister called for donations from the public to assist in rebuilding efforts.
“Although we do not have an estimate of the total amount of damage that it will cost to repair, it will be extremely high. The damage in Kruger is extensive and we are going to plead with everybody out there…that would like to contribute to getting Kruger National Park back to where it was before these floods.
“We also appeal to corporate people and people in nature conservation to make donations so that we can get it back to standard,” he said.
The Minister visited the park on Saturday where he spent time assessing the damage and engaging with various stakeholders, including SANParks leadership.
He praised the park for taking a “safety first” approach after it prohibited day visits in response to the heavy rainfall.
“While we have witnessed major disruptions and damage owing to the heavy rains in Mpumalanga and Limpopo over the last few days, what has been even more incredible to witness has been the well-planned and executed response from the park.
“Our early warning systems meant that the emergency teams could act timeously to evacuate staff and guests in a coordinated manner.
“We are grateful that no loss of lives has been recorded and evacuations have progressed smoothly, and I once again extend my gratitude to the park’s management team and emergency services for their swift response,” Aucamp said.
The Minister commended the team for applying a safety-first, human-centric approach despite facing massive disruptions to operations and infrastructure – including road and gate closures, electricity outages and interruptions to other basic services.
SANParks has confirmed that day visits remain prohibited until further notice.
There are also restrictions at several gates around the park, and access is limited to essential delivery vehicles, airport transfers with valid flight tickets, officials and guests with confirmed accommodation bookings at Berg n Dal, Skukuza, and Pretoriuskop. — NNN-SANEWS