The death toll in Mpumalanga has increased to seven following heavy rains in parts of the province.
This just as the department of water and sanitation issued a warning that the Driekoppies Dam, one of the largest in the province, was full and on the brink of overflowing.
Nkomazi municipality spokesperson Cyril Ripinga told Sowetan Driekoppis was likely to overflow if it continued to rain. He said such event would be "catastrophic".
Ripinga's concern was confirmed by a message from the department of water and sanitation's Fikile Guma to the municipality and the provincial government. The message reads: “Driekoppies Dam is about to spill. It is one of our largest dams in Mpumalanga and the river from it (Nkomazi) flows through highly populated areas of formal and informal settlements of Nkomazi municipality, as well as substantial agricultural holdings with a high impact on our provincial GDP.
"... there [are] regular messages on community radio and WhatsApp to warn people that there will be flooding when the dam spills.”
Meanwhile, Ripinga said urgent relief efforts were being made by Nkomazi to provide shelter to flood victims.
“We are now trying to house the 28 families that were displaced in temporary shelters and we also provided them with food and blankets," Ripinga said, expressing concerns for a bigger disaster for communities should Driekoppies overflow.
On Monday night, a woman in her late 40s from Msholozi village, between Mbombela and White River, was washed away.
In Mataffin village, near the Mbombela Stadium, two children were saved from floods in the area. Dozens of families in the area have been displaced.
“We have seven verified deaths since the start of heavy rains. We can confirm that a woman was washed away with her house in Msholozi village on Monday and 28 families were displaced in the Nkomazi municipality on Monday.
"As we speak, councillors and the municipalities are trying to help where possible,” said department of cooperative governance and traditional affairs spokesperson George Mthethwa.
Mthethwa said many roads in the province had been damaged and warned motorists and pedestrians to be cautious.
Ward 14 councilor Kenneth Mkhonto said he and other community members stayed up all night as they helped people in Mataffin.
“The two children are in hospital. Unfortunately, we could not save a woman at Msholozi whose house was washed away while she was inside. She was found dead at around 1am,” said Mkhonto.
The Driekoppies Dam was built mainly for irrigation in 1998, near the Swaziland border.
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