About 160 families in Jagersfontein in the Free State who were displaced when a mine dam wall burst and flooded part of the town, destroying homes and infrastructure, have finally received houses.

The houses were handed over by the Jagersfontein Developments Mine to families that were affected by the dam wall collapse in the area in 2022.

One person died from the incident and another is still missing.

ACCOUNTABILITY 

Speaking on behalf of the mine, Billy Bilankulu, explaned that over 90 families chose to have the mine rebuild and renovate their homes, whilst others opted to take the legal route to have the mine compensate them.

"From the mining side we'll never say we're happy until the community speaks for themselves. However, more than anything, I think today marks a different step towards a group relationship that we need to start to have with the community. We came in at a point where we were supposed to introduce ourselves to the community and the disaster happened immediately. We made a commitment to say we will try and fulfil our promises of rebuilding their lives which is exactly what we're trying to do," he said.

WELL DONE

Deputy President Paul Mashatile commended the Free State Provincial Government, the Kopanong Local Municipality, as well as the Jagersfontein Development Project, on the progress achieved in supporting the community.

Deputy President Mashatile was delegated the responsibility to provide leadership in the implementation of rapid response interventions on service delivery and trouble-shooting in service delivery hotspots in the country by President Cyril Ramaphosa.

"The remarkable progress we continue to make, brings us closer towards restoring better living conditions for the people of Jagersfontein. Such progress bears testimony that working together through partnership between government and the private sector, we can create a better life for all our citizens," said Mashatile.