CoGTA Minister Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma Tshwane floods
Tshwane floods Photo: CoGTA

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Dlamini Zuma Confirms At Least 2 Dead in Tshwane Floods

Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) Minister Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma confirmed on Tuesday that at least two people have died in the Tshwane floods. Speaking during a visit to some of the areas devastated by the persistent rain and floods in Tshwane, the Minister said a mother is also missing. Dlamini Zuma said: “In […]

By SAPeople
11-12-19 04:31
in Eish!
CoGTA Minister Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma Tshwane floods
Tshwane floods Photo: CoGTA

Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) Minister Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma confirmed on Tuesday that at least two people have died in the Tshwane floods.

CoGTA Minister Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma Tshwane floods
Tshwane floods Photo: CoGTA

Speaking during a visit to some of the areas devastated by the persistent rain and floods in Tshwane, the Minister said a mother is also missing.

Dlamini Zuma said: “In Centurion, there was a body that washed up. They are certifying the person. We have one fatality that is related directly to the floods, and another was electrocuted in Soshanguve.”

CoGTA Minister Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma Tshwane floods
CoGTA Minister Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma visits areas affected by the Tshwane floods

The department is coordinating multi-disciplinary interventions through the National Disaster Management Centre (NDMC) to respond to the devastation caused by the rain and resultant floods in Gauteng, the North West Province, Mpumalanga and some parts of Limpopo. President Cyril Ramaphosa has cut his Egypt trip short, returning to SA on Tuesday because of the floods.

Rescue operations have been intense in Pretoria, and the Minister noted the rapid response of various disaster management teams. The Air Force was even called in on Monday to rescue those trapped by the floods as rain blanketed down in Centurion.

On Tuesday morning, at least four people were successfully rescued from their vehicles when they’d become trapped by a bridge which flooded in Hammanskraal.

Gauteng was the hardest hit province, with incidents that required people to be evacuated from buildings and some relocated in community halls and churches… particularly those affected when around 700 shacks were washed away in Mamelodi by rivers breaking their banks. The Minister said there are plans to decrease the number of people who live in shacks (watch below).

A man also died on Sunday evening when his vehicle was swept away by flash floods near to Hartbeespoort Dam. The NSRI said the man had managed to break a window of the vehicle so his wife could escape. She ran to a nearby house where a panic alarm was activated, but unfortunately the man passed away before rescuers could get to him.

The floods have affected Eskom, which said it has had to implement loadshedding because a power station and coal mine were flooded; as well as gold and diamond mines which have cancelled underground shifts because of the imminent danger of flooding.

President Ramaphosa is due to meet with Eskom’s Board and Management on Wednesday to discuss solutions for the loadshedding crisis. He will also visit the stricken community in Tembisa on Gauteng’s East Rand where people have been severely impacted by the recent rains and flooding.

– SAnews.gov.za

WATCH Floating cars, water-filled roads and helicopter rescues – Centurion floods

If you’d like to help, please drop off blankets, food, nappies and clothing (for adults too) at the Nellmapius Library and Community Hall and the Centurion Fire Station.