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Passengers tell of dramatic rescue
23/11/2007 08:24 - (SA)
Annelene Moses, Amanda Roestoff , Beeld
Johannesburg - More than 150 people were dramatically rescued on the Reef last night after two buses and two minibus taxis were trapped under a bridge by floodwater.
Earlier on Thursday a student, 18, died after a huge bluegum tree fell on his car. Two people were killed by lightning.
These dramas ensued after a short, but powerful thunderstorm over Johannesburg and surrounding areas.
Emergency services were called to Canada Road near Soweto about 19:00 where two buses and two taxis were trapped by floodwaters under a bridge.
The last people were saved only about 22:00.
Rising water
According to Victoria Molefe, 32, a passenger in one of the buses, the water was about 1,8m deep. Everybody was terrified.
"I saw the Putco bus and the taxis were already in the water. The people - men and women - started screaming as the water reached our hips and kept rising.
"It was very hot and it felt as if we were suffocating. People started opening the windows to let in air."
Judith Hutamo, 62, started praying when she saw the rising water: "God help us not to drown here."
Macbeth Mvumvo, 27, said he kept calling the Vodacom emergency number, saying: "send a boat, a helicopter, I can't swim".
The passengers climbed on top of the bus. By 21:00 firefighters fixed a cable from the buses and taxis.
One by one, the passengers had to get back to the lower level of the bus, from where they were rescued. One woman had an asthma attack, and a couple of others were slightly injured.
The passengers of the taxi broke the windows, climbing to safety before the emergency services arrived.
30 accidents
According to chief superintendent Wayne Minnaar, a spokesperson for the Johannesburg metro police, the tree next to Helen Joseph Hospital hit power lines, before falling on three cars.
According to Netcare 911 spokesperson Nick Dollman, the 18-year-old student's body was only cut from the wreck about 18:10. The weight of the tree nearly flattened the car.
Firemen used jaws of life to free the body. The power lines and pouring rain made the rescue more difficult.
A seriously injured female motorist in one of the other cars was admitted to Garden City Hospital. A third motorist suffered minor injuries.
About 30 accidents were reported to Johannesburg metro police between 17:00 and 18:00. Netcare was called out to 22 accident scenes between 15:30 and 19:00. Traffic on the M1 North and South was bumper to bumper as a result of the storm. The rainwater was knee-deep.
A woman was hit by lightning at a brick factory in Mazda Street, Randfontein about 16:14. She died at the scene.
Another woman died after she was hit by lightning in Northcliff at 17:03. She was using an umbrella and died at the scene.
Nothemba Noruwana, Acsa spokesperson said the storm delayed all flights from OR Tambo airport for an undetermined time. By 18:00 the flights resumed taking off and landing. She wasn't aware of any flights having to turn back from OR Tambo.
- Beeld
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