Floods In South Africa Claim More Lives, Leave Many Others Missing

Five people are missing and at least two lost their lives as the flood continues to cause problems in parts of South Africa.

The government declared a National State of Emergency earlier this month after flooding caused extensive damage and at least 12 fatalities.

The body of a six-year-old was found on Sunday afternoon, but rescuers are still looking for his mother and four-year-old sister after deadly floodwaters stormed through Coffee Bay on Saturday.

Also, two boys, aged five and seven, are assumed to have drowned after they were swept away while crossing a stream with their mother and sister. A 24-year-old woman from Mapuzi washed away after her house in the village was inundated, and rescuers are still searching for her.

Torrential rains carve a path of destruction across the Eastern Cape

The town of Coffee Bay and the surrounding territories of the King Sabata Dalindyebo local municipality were severely flooded on Feb. 18. Infrastructure, including houses and schools, was also destroyed. Six people have been swept away in floodwaters. Four people are still missing, even though two bodies have subsequently been found.

Lekwa Municipality in Mpumalanga Province recently experienced severe flooding that damaged buildings and infrastructure and required the evacuation of several households. The Grootdraaidam, where floodgates have been opened, has seen an increase in inflow after days of heavy rain.

After the Klipriver overflowed its banks on Feb.17, flooding was confirmed in Ladysmith, a city in the KwaZulu-Natal region. Homes and commercial complexes were inundated, and several highways were shut, Flood List reported.

Residents of the flooded Deelpan village in Mahikeng are reportedly being relocated, as per authorities in the North West Province.

Communities in Deelpan are in trouble, according to the Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality, since the entire hamlet is on the verge of drowning.

Meanwhile, the latest heavy rains have cut off the residents of Mekemeke in Mpumalanga from the outside world for more than a week. Officials from the local government and non-governmental organizations distributed food parcels to the villagers.

"We have two hundred and sixty-nine footbridges that have been washed away by the rain, and we have eighteen big bridges that have been washed away, you can imagine how difficult it is for those communities to cross and try to buy food, they are unable to do that. We have almost one thousand eight hundred and fifteen families that are without shelter, some of their homes have been washed away by the rains, and some are full of water," said Phindile Pertunia Magagula, Nkomazi Municipality Mayor, as reported by Africa News.