Durban – Two people were killed and houses and infrastructure were damaged when a devastating storm swept across the uMlalazi Municipality in northern KwaZulu-Natal on New Year’s Eve.
Municipal spokesperson Nonhlanhla Jele said the storm, which wreaked havoc in parts of the municipality on New Year’s Eve, left two people dead.
“The two victims, both in their tender ages, succumbed to death after one of them was struck by lightning, while the other was swept away by the sea,” Jele said.
The storm caused damage amounting to millions of rand, including damage to parts of the Eshowe business precinct and in residential areas, where roofs were blown off houses.
“The infrastructure, such as power lines, roads and buildings, were seriously damaged, leaving parts of uMlalazi without power supply.”
Jele said that, as of Monday, uMlalazi municipal manager Njabulo Shandu, councillors, uMlalazi Municipality disaster teams, the police and the South African Social Security Agency were on the ground assessing the extent of the damage.
uMlalazi mayor Queen Xulu conveyed her condolences to the two families who had lost their loved ones and vowed to assist them with funeral arrangements.
“I’m devastated by the recurrence of the storms in uMlalazi. It is clear that our municipality is prone to disasters, as we are still reeling from another that took place in November 2021.
“The municipality is pleading with local communities to co-operate with our disaster teams currently profiling the extent of the damage in different wards,” Xulu said.
Xulu also pleaded with the community from the affected wards, especially where road infrastructure had been badly affected, to be patient as relief was imminent.
Meanwhile, on New Year’s Day, KwaZulu-Natal Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) spokesperson Siboniso Mngadi said the KZN Provincial Disaster Management Centre had received reports of extensive damage caused by heavy rain in two districts, Ilembe and uMgungundlovu, resulting in one confirmed fatality in Mandeni and three people reported missing after their vehicle was swept away in the Msunduzi River in Pietermaritzburg.
He said an intense rainstorm lasting about 15 minutes in Mandeni caused devastating damage to homes and infrastructure.
“Our response teams have confirmed the tragic loss of a 7-year-old boy, who drowned and (whose body) was subsequently recovered by the search and rescue team.
“Additionally, numerous houses and road infrastructure sustained damage. Our disaster assessment teams are currently on site, working to establish the full extent of the destruction and to assess the number of affected people,” Mngadi said.
He said uMsunduzi Emergency Control in Pietermaritzburg responded to an incident involving a vehicle with three occupants that was swept away in the Msunduzi River above Henley Dam following heavy rains around 3pm on Sunday.
The floods caused damage to the bridge, resulting in the car being washed away. Search and rescue teams working with IPSS Medical Rescue launched an operation to find the three missing people.
“Search and rescue teams discovered the bodies of two people who were in the car that was swept away in the Msunduzi River in Pietermaritzburg. Search and rescue operations were continuing to discover the remaining person,” Mngadi said.
Cogta MEC Bongiwe Sithole-Moloi called for a comprehensive assessment of the extent of damage and appealed to families to report missing loved ones in the aftermath of heavy rainfall promptly.
She said Cogta would provide further updates on the extent of damage once it had consolidated all the statistics.
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