The inclement weather that has caused havoc around the country with at least 50 people killed in the Eastern Cape while other provinces including Gauteng have remained on high alert.
Rooftops of houses in KZN have been blown away while trees caused structural damages and a motorbike accident in eThekwini. Five schools in Mpumalanga, whose ceilings were also damaged, were forced to find alternative community halls to continue with their mid-year exams yesterday.
According Mpumalanga government nearly 100 houses were affected by strong winds in Ehlanzeni District Municipality, Nkomazi and Mbombela.
Provincial Department of Cooperative Governance, Human Settlements and Traditional Affairs (CoGHSTA) MEC Mr Speed Mashile said the Disaster Management Team is currently conducting thorough assessments to determine the full extent of the damage.
“We are working closely with relevant authorities and community partners to facilitate recovery efforts and provide assistance to affected residents” assured Mashilo.
However, the Eastern Cape remains the province with most fatilities linked to the weather.
"It’s the mother of all tragedies. We were retrieving the bodies of dead children. It is so painful," this is how premier Oscar Mabuyane described the situation yesterday.
"We never anticipated a tragedy of this magnitude ... what we are seeing here is unheard of... it is beyond imagination," Mabuyane said.
He was speaking after the bodies of two boys and a girl, all pupils, were recovered along a swollen stream near Decoligny.
Eastern Cape government spokesperson Khuselwa Rantjie said: "We have confirmed that 49 of our fellow citizens have sadly lost their lives in the OR Tambo District alone. Among them, we mourn the tragic loss of children whose scholar transport was swept away in floodwaters.
“The number of people confirmed to have been in the [scholar transport] minibus taxi is 13. Three learners were rescued alive yesterday, and sadly, four learners have been confirmed to be deceased, together with the driver and a conductor. Four learners are still missing.”
Asongezwa Ntlabathi’s two nephews, aged six and eight, were found in the mud at their Decoligny home on Wednesday.
"It is important for the communities to help themselves during fire incidents prior arrival of firefighters, as that helps in the reduction of structural damages and preservation of lives.
— William Ntladi
Ntlabathi, 25, said she had been sleeping when she received a frantic call from her mother in the rapidly rising water.
“She asked if I could phone for help. I dialled 10111 but an officer said there was nothing they could do. I was advised to phone the municipal disaster unit,” Ntlabathi said.
“My mother told me the water had reached her house and the beds and wardrobes were being washed away.”
Her mother’s house was totally submerged by raging water before they could find any help.
On Wednesday morning, she found her youngest nephew lying face down in the mud. Her other nephew’s body was recovered later in the afternoon.
Her 54-year-old mother and her oldest nephew, aged 11, were still missing on Wednesday. “I no longer harbour any hope that they are still alive. I just wish their bodies could be recovered.”
Fellow Decoligny resident Loyiso Nokhayingana, 25, had to climb into the ceiling at about 6am on Tuesday and use a spade to break through the roof to escape.
He and his 49-year-old mother had found themselves trapped inside the house. He was able to rescue his mother and they were pulled to safety by neighbours.
“It was so fast. In less than two minutes the water inside the house was up to my waist and by the time I got to the ceiling, the windows were totally submerged.
“I heard one of my neighbours, a woman who stays alone, screaming next door but her house was quickly swallowed by floodwaters. Her body was found inside after the water subsided.”
Mabuyane, who joined the search for missing people with members of his executive, said the number of fatalities could increase as the search continued.
Mabuyane said many other parts of the province had been affected by the rains, while roads in other parts of the province had become impassable due to snow.
“According to reports, about 600 people have been displaced in Butterworth alone,” he said.
Mabuyane said at least five rescue teams, backed by a helicopter, had been dispatched to search for those missing in Mthatha.
A teacher at Bambanani Junior Secondary School in Slovo said at least two families had gone missing.
Several victims spoke of how they had managed to escape as their homes were engulfed by flood waters.
National cooperative governance and traditional affairs spokesperson Legadima Leso said the most important thing to do was to clear the snow from the Eastern Cape roads to make sure they are safe for drivers.
"Once the roads have been cleared, we will have an assessment done on the interventions and the cost of repairing damaged infrastructure."
According to Leso, Free State, KZN and the Eastern Cape are the ones that were badly affected by the inclement weather.
Meanwhile, four pupils were injured when heavy winds battered homes and schools in KZN.
In Gauteng, five people lost their lives in house fires earlier week when the cold front hit the province. Another person died under a bridge in Joburg after a suspected case of hypothermia.
Joburg EMS spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi told Sowetan yesterday that they have activated disaster management centres to monitor situation in all seven regions, especially in informal settlements.
His counterpart in Ekurhuleni, William Ntladi, said they were also on high alert even though not weather-related incident have been reported.
"It is important for the communities to help themselves during fire incidents prior arrival of firefighters, as that helps in the reduction of structural damages and preservation of lives." – Additional reporting by Nandi Ntini and Herman Moloi.
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