Recent floods in Windhoek a blessing and curse – Oryx Properties CEO

Oryx Properties Chief Executive, Ben Jooste expressed his gratitude for the teams that worked through the night to ensure that Maerua Mall and Gustav Voigts were cleaned after the recent flooding in Windhoek.

Jooste said Windhoekers breathed a sigh of relief after welcome rains fell in the capital recently and broke the heatwave of the past few weeks. “Although we welcome the rain and are extremely grateful, we also sympathise with those who have lost belongings in the torrent of water caused by an average of between 70 and 100 mm in an hour. The rain caused damage to infrastructure and content at numerous buildings and houses,” he added.

He emphasised that Maerua Mall had some water ingress because of municipal storm-water lines being blocked and the Gustav Voigts Centre similarly had some spillage due to the storm-water line not being able to handle a large amount of water.  Also, one of Oryx’s industrial assets in Julius K Nyerere Street had some water leaks with gutters overflowing onto the ceilings from above.

“Although this is never great to behold, our water damage was not severe, and our teams have worked hard to ensure that the properties were cleaned up and that remedial repair work can continue as soon as possible. We are thankful that no serious injuries or loss of life have been reported from these properties of ours,” explained Jooste.

Jooste also thanked the public and tenants for their patience and understanding during this time. “We wish you all an enjoyable festive season and many happy shopping hours at our malls,” he concluded.