As thousands of people began picking up the pieces of their lives in the wake of this week’s flood devastation, President Cyril Ramaphosa warned the effects of climate change on SA could no longer be ignored.The torrential rains that pounded KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape not only caused flooding and mudslides that left more than 60 people dead, but also brought KwaZulu-Natal to the brink of an environmental disaster.As mop-up operations continued and Ramaphosa visited some of the affected areas on Wednesday, environmental activists in Bayhead and Durban harbour worked tirelessly against a deluge of plastic waste flushed out from the city’s stormwater drains.Ramaphosa, during a visit to Umlazi, where 10-year-old Mnotho Mlotshwa died when his home was swept away in a flash flood, paid tribute to those involved in rescue efforts.“We want to thank the community, who were the real rescue heroes here.“In a moment of great need, you came to the rescue.“This is the sort of solidarity we want to see among our people,” Ramaphosa said.“You have given them shelter, food and places to sleep.“There have been outstanding rescues and life-saving feats by many people, who jumped into the mud, who jumped into flowing water to save their children, their loved ones and other friends and neighbours.”In the Eastern Cape, four people drowned.They include a young child playing in a ditch in Nelson Mandela Bay, a woman in KwaKhanyayo in Mbizana, and a woman in Ngqeleni near Mthatha who was trying to cross a raging river.A 12-year-old girl also drowned in KwaBhaca while trying to cross a swollen river.Bridges and roads have been damaged in Alfred Nzo, Buffalo City, the OR Tambo district and Nelson Mandela Bay, Eastern Cape premier Phumulo Masualle’s spokesperson Sizwe Kupelo said.On Wednesday, Masualle conducted a walkabout of Port St Johns, where hundreds of people have been displaced by the torrential downpours that began on Sunday night.Masualle has assigned senior government officials to compile a full report on damage in the Eastern Cape.Meanwhile, Ramaphosa – speaking in Durban after visiting the flood-ravaged areas of Amanzimtoti‚ Umlazi and Chatsworth – said the force of nature was huge.“This is partly what climate change is about‚ it just hits when we least expect it.”The government would make money available to help the destitute.“These are emergency situations that we budget for‚ so resources will be mobilised in the biggest way so that our people who are currently in need are assisted‚” he said.At Port St Johns, Masualle pledged to build proper drainage systems in Green Farm, an informal settlement where nearly 400 people have been displaced since Monday.Some Green Farm homes, especially in low-lying areas, will have to be demolished and people moved elsewhere.Some homes were built on top of water pipes, according to Port St Johns mayor Nomvuzo Mlombile-Cingo and OR Tambo district mayor Nomakhosazana Meth.Masualle told the two mayors the government had to be honest with citizens and not wait for disaster to strike, but Mlombile-Cingo said some people had refused to move even after being told their houses were at risk.Masualle said his office had allocated about R109m for revitalising roads in Port St Johns and fixing stormwater drains.Green Farm would be included in these plans.“There were delays with some of the projects due to the recent strike but we have been having social facilitations with the people,” Masualle said. “We need to speed this up.” Asked if the province would apply to the national government to have Port St Johns declared a disaster area, Masualle said that would be revealed after they received the report.Kupelo said the report was expected to be handed over on Monday.Mlombile-Cingo said donations were flooding in from businesses and others.The municipality has set up a bank account for those wanting to donate money.The flooding has put further strain on the province’s emergency infrastructure budget.Just last week, Masualle’s cabinet gave the go-ahead to roads and transport MEC Weziwe Tikana to apply for a R200m grant from the national disaster management centre to help fix 33 bridges swept away by heavy rains in March.Transport department spokesperson Khuselwa Rantjie said: “With respect to this week ... a full-scale assessment will be conducted once conditions permit.”