Rescue teams searching for missing people after South Africa floods
Authorities said they expected the death toll to rise.
The missing included four high school students who were swept away when their bus was caught up in the floods near a river on Tuesday.
Six students on the bus were confirmed dead while three were rescued after clinging onto trees and calling out for help, according to the provincial government.
The floods hit the province early on Tuesday after an extreme cold front brought heavy rain, strong winds and snow to parts of eastern and southern South Africa.
Forecasters had warned about the damaging weather last week.
Eastern Cape provincial government officials said they believed people were still missing but did not give an exact number.
They were working with families to find out who was still unaccounted for, they said.
On Wednesday, rescue teams brought bodies out of the water in blue body bags while witnesses said many people had taken refuge on the top of buildings or in trees.
The floods centred on the town of Mthatha and its surrounding district, which is around 267 miles south of the east coast city of Durban.
Officials said at least 58 schools and 20 hospitals were damaged while hundreds of families were left homeless after their houses were submerged under water or washed away by the floods.
Critical infrastructure including roads and bridges has been badly damaged, Eastern Cape premier Oscar Mabuyane said.
He said it was one of the worst weather-related disasters his province had experienced.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced he had activated the National Disaster Management Centre to help local authorities in the Eastern Cape while national officials were expected to visit the province on Thursday.
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The Independent
a day ago
- The Independent
Rescuers still pulling bodies out of the water as death toll in South Africa floods reaches 86
The death toll in floods in South Africa's Eastern Cape province has risen to 86, the police minister said Saturday as rescuers continued to retrieve bodies from the floodwater. Senzo Mchunu, the country's top law enforcement official, spoke to police rescue teams that have been searching for missing people and recovering bodies in and around the town of Mthatha since the floods hit in the predawn hours of Tuesday. Mchunu said the floods were a tragedy but urged local residents to ignore what he called inaccurate reports spreading on social media that the disaster was caused by someone opening the sluice gates at a nearby dam, leading to water surging through communities. Mchunu said the Mthatha Dam in question did not have sluice gates. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Friday during a visit to Mthatha that authorities would investigate if there were any problems with the local dam that might have led to the tragedy. A wall of water 3-4 meters (10-13 feet) high in places flowed out of the river, the head of the provincial government said, washing away victims with parts of their houses and trapping others inside their homes. Ramaphosa partly attributed the rains and floods to climate change and said some of South Africa's coastal regions were now constantly vulnerable to weather-related disasters. More than 400 people died in flooding in and around South Africa's east coast city of Durban in 2022, which a study linked to climate change. The floods in the Mthatha area and a neighboring district caught many people unaware despite weather services issuing warnings last week that an extreme cold front was heading for the region, bringing heavy rains and gale-force winds. The largely rural region is one of the country's poorest and authorities said communities living in informal housing close to the river were especially vulnerable when it burst its banks. Authorities have been criticized for the rescue response but also for the state of the infrastructure in the area. Officials believe that people are still missing and the death toll could rise further as rescue teams have been searching through floodwater and damaged homes for nearly a week. One of the bodies retrieved on Saturday was that of a boy that rescuers believed was around 13 or 14 years old. Many children are among the dead, although authorities haven't given an exact count. Some of the victims were washed up to 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) away from their homes by the floods. ___
The Independent
2 days ago
- The Independent
South African president to visit flood sites with death toll at 78 and expected to climb
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa will visit the sites Friday of devastating floods that have left at least 78 people dead in the southeast of the country as search and rescue operations continue for a fourth day and authorities say they expect the death toll to rise. Ramaphosa's office said he will travel to the town of Mthatha in Eastern Cape province, where the floods hit hardest when they began in the early hours of Tuesday. Ramaphosa's visit will come amid criticism of authorities' early response to the disaster, which was caused by an extreme weather front that brought heavy rain, strong winds and even snow to parts of the province. Forecasters warned about the extreme weather last week. The head of the provincial government said the rescue effort was 'paralyzed' in the first few hours after the floods because of a lack of resources like specialized search and rescue teams, divers and K-9 dog units in one of the country's poorest regions. Eastern Cape Premier Oscar Mabuyane said the province of 7.2 million people has just one official rescue helicopter, which had to be brought from another city more than 500 kilometers (310 miles) away. The floods in the predawn hours caught many unaware, with victims washed away along with parts of their houses and other debris. Authorities said they expected more bodies to be recovered as rescue teams search the floodwater and what is left of damaged houses and other structures to look for those still missing. Many children are among the dead. 'I need psychological help because I saw people dying in front of me. They were being dragged by the water along with the corrugated iron," said Zinathi Vuso, a resident of Mthatha. "Others tried to hold or climb onto something, but it would break and they ended up dead. That is why you are seeing people still getting recovered and others are yet to be found.' Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa, who led a national government team deployed to the province earlier in the week, said on national broadcaster SABC late Thursday that authorities were appealing for residents to report missing people so rescuers could get a better idea of how many people they were still looking for. 'We are in a crisis. A real disaster,' Hlabisa said. 'The more water subsides, the more people will be found.' ___
North Wales Chronicle
3 days ago
- North Wales Chronicle
Rescue teams searching for missing people after South Africa floods
Authorities said they expected the death toll to rise. The missing included four high school students who were swept away when their bus was caught up in the floods near a river on Tuesday. Six students on the bus were confirmed dead while three were rescued after clinging onto trees and calling out for help, according to the provincial government. The floods hit the province early on Tuesday after an extreme cold front brought heavy rain, strong winds and snow to parts of eastern and southern South Africa. Forecasters had warned about the damaging weather last week. Eastern Cape provincial government officials said they believed people were still missing but did not give an exact number. They were working with families to find out who was still unaccounted for, they said. On Wednesday, rescue teams brought bodies out of the water in blue body bags while witnesses said many people had taken refuge on the top of buildings or in trees. The floods centred on the town of Mthatha and its surrounding district, which is around 267 miles south of the east coast city of Durban. Officials said at least 58 schools and 20 hospitals were damaged while hundreds of families were left homeless after their houses were submerged under water or washed away by the floods. Critical infrastructure including roads and bridges has been badly damaged, Eastern Cape premier Oscar Mabuyane said. He said it was one of the worst weather-related disasters his province had experienced. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced he had activated the National Disaster Management Centre to help local authorities in the Eastern Cape while national officials were expected to visit the province on Thursday.
