Heavy rains have wreaked havoc in parts of the Northern Cape.
Premier Dr Zamani Saul says the John Taolo Gaetsewe District is the worst affected.
In a tweet, the premier says some villages in the area are completely cutoff.
“We are on the ground distributing food parcels to these affected areas with the help of SANDF. We are busy finalising our plans to restore the damaged roads,” he concludes.
Northern Cape has heavy rains and worst affected is John Taolo Gaetsewe District. Some villages are completely cutoff. We are on the ground distributing food parcels to these affected areas with the help of SANDF. We are busy finalizing our plans to restore the damaged roads. pic.twitter.com/3s8H6jB9iZ
The Njokweni family in Mboza, KwaZulu-Natal, has been dealt a double blow following the collapse of the wall of the house, which claimed gogo Agrennet Gumede (80).
Heavy rains, fanned by strong winds, caused the collapse.
Speaking to Matubaland FM news, gogo Gumede’s grandson Xolani Dlamini says the 80-year-old passed away in hospital after the incident.
He says gogo’s son, who had been sick for a while, also lost his battle with life on the same day his mother passed on.
Gogo Gumede was sitting with her daughter Perret Njokweni (58) when the wall of the house collapsed on them.
Njokweni is in a critical condition at Ngwelezane Hospital.
“While my aunt managed to escape – gogo couldn’t. Neighbours came out to assist the family and we called an ambulance which came and took them to hospital,” says Dlamini.
Ward 13 councillor, where the incident occurred, John Gwala has warned the community to be careful when it rains.
He says no other incidents have been reported in the area, other than the Njokweni tragedy.
Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs MEC, Mandla Msibi, has revealed this in a statement.
He says a 5-year-old boy was swept away by a stream of water at Masoyi in Mbombela; a 40-year-old man drowned in a local river in Pilgrims’ Rest while a baby fell into a river at Elukwatini while her mother was crossing.
“The fatalities have left us grief-stricken. Our heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families,” says Msibi.
The MEC is urging the public not to risk their lives by crossing local rivers and dams as they are currently overflowing.
The heavy rains were a result of Cyclone Eloise, which also battered parts of Limpopo and KwaZulu-Natal.
