With occasional but heavy rains experienced in the capital, the City of Windhoek has extended a call to the residents living in unsuitable and flood-prone areas to approach the city's Human Settlement and Disaster Risk Management Departments for relocation to higher ground.

With the recent heavy rains, some houses may have been flooded, residents' property damaged, or even people killed.

Lydia Amutenya, the city's spokesperson, says the city has tried numerous times to persuade those living in danger zones to relocate with its assistance.

In previous years, some people followed the advice and were safely relocated to higher ground.

The relocation of residents can at times result in the illegal occupation of land, as Amutenya explains.

"What we have noticed is that there are people who, if they see we have moved somebody from this place, then they take over the space where we took people from; this is also additional work for us because we removed people in that area because it is not suitable."

Amutenya further explains that an assessment will be carried out before a person is shifted to a new area.

The city has undertaken an assessment of its informal areas, including Groot |Aub to establish the safety of some structures.

"Some of them are not suitable where people are sitting on hills or in the riverbed, and they can be swept away by the water at any time."

Lydia Amutenya says the relocations to higher ground and safe areas will be done in the same vicinity where the individual resides.