Heavy rain across most of SA
2013-01-19 14:50
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Johannesburg
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Johannesburg - Heavy rains continued to fall across most parts of the country on Saturday, said the SA Weather Services.
Forecaster Brandsy Bulo said the downpours would continue through the weekend.
"We have issued a warning of heavy falls of rain for the parts of the North West, Gauteng, Mpumalanga, Free State and KwaZulu-Natal," he said.
By early Saturday afternoon, KwaZulu-Natal had been the hardest hit with 51mm of rainfall recorded since Friday.
In Mpumalanga, disaster struck in the early hours of the morning when three vehicles, including an ambulance, were swept off a bridge in Malelane.
Spokesperson for the provincial safety department Moeti Mmusi, said the ambulance was carrying two people when it was swept off the bridge. Both passengers were rescued.
"A police patrol vehicle and another car were also swept off the bridge.
"The passengers of the civilian vehicle were also rescued but emergency workers are still on the scene searching for the patrol vehicle and its occupants," said Mmusi.
Provincial MEC for Safety, Vusi Shongwe called on motorists and pedestrians to avoid rivers and other flooded areas.
"Let us be more vigilant and not underestimate the magnitude of these rains... We cannot assume that we know the rivers and put our lives by wanting to cross when they are clearly overflowing," he said.
- SAPA
