The tally of deaths from severe flooding in eastern South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province rose by a further three deaths this Saturday, to a total of 398, and at least 27 people remain missing. They reported from official sources.
Emergency teams continue to work in the devastated area, which is again on alert due to forecasts of heavy rain and winds.
“According to the latest update, (the number of) deaths has increased and now stands at 398 with 27 people still missing,” the KwaZulu-Natal Council for Cooperative Government and Traditional Affairs confirmed in a statement this afternoon.
local authorities, who have described this disaster as one of the “darkest” moments in the history of the provinceThey estimate that around 40,000 people have been affected by the flooding since the torrential rains began last Monday.
They also estimate that 3,937 homes were totally destroyed and 8,039 partially damaged.
The South African government has declared a state of emergency in the province and has deployed army troops to help with emergency work and search for the disappeared.
The total damage has not yet been estimated, but will amount to millions in losses, KwaZulu-Natal Prime Minister Sihle Zikalala conceded this week.
The region of Durban, the largest city in KwaZulu-Natal and the third largest in South Africa, has been hardest hit. The flooding hit the surrounding informal settlement slums particularly hard, some of which were completely washed away by water and landslides.
A man walks past the remains of a house on the outskirts of Durban April 15, 2022, where the whereabouts of ten people are unknown after their homes were swept away after devastating rains and floods. Photo: Phil Magakoe/AFPThe infrastructure with electricity, running water and many medical centers was also badly damaged.
According to calculations by Mxolisi Kaunda, Mayor of Durban City Council (officially known as eThekwini), the damage was estimated at 757 million rand (around 50 million euros) in this municipality alone on Thursday.
The country’s President, Cyril Ramaphosa, visited the affected area last Wednesday and said it was a “disaster of enormous proportions,” adding to the direct link between the floods and climate change.
KwaZulu-Natal has seen an increase in such severe weather events in recent years.
The worst of recent times came in 2019, when torrential rain and flooding at the same time of year killed about 80 people.
This province too is still grappling with the devastation caused by the major civil unrest that South Africa experienced in July 2021 and that They have just been experienced with greater intensity in KwaZulu-Natal, where 275 of the 354 deaths left behind by these incidents have been recorded. (I)