Limpopo flood rescue continues
2013-01-21 11:42
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2013-01-21 09:53
Rescuers have called off the search for two missing people in the Komati River in Tonga, Mpumalanga. Watch.WATCH
Polokwane - Operations resumed on Monday morning to rescue
people left stranded when a Limpopo river burst its banks, the provincial
co-operative governance department said.
"The choppers were trying to help yesterday [Sunday],
but had to stop at night. Forty-five people out of 334 people were
rescued," spokesperson Dieketseng Diale said.
"The rescue operations resumed today [Monday]."
Residents were stranded when they sought refuge on rooftops
and mountains.
Diale could not immediately confirm reports that four people
drowned when they were swept away by the strong currents on Sunday.
The extent of the damage was still being assessed.
"A lot of houses have been damaged, but there is no way
to give a figure because certain areas are still inaccessible."
Provincial health and social development MEC Norman Mabasa
was expected to visit the Musina hospital and flood victims on Monday morning.
"Such disasters weigh heavily on the response of our
health services, so we are visiting Musina to ensure that everything is running
smoothly as it should and [the hospital] is able to accommodate the flood
victims," he said.
More rain expected
The SA Weather Service said more rain was expected in
Limpopo and Mpumalanga on Monday.
"There is a warning for heavy falls in Mpumalanga and
Limpopo for today, but it will improve later in the afternoon," forecaster
William Msianga said.
No rain was expected in the rest of country until Thursday.
In Mpumalanga, gravel roads and some camps inside the Kruger
National Park (KNP) remained closed on Monday because of heavy rains.
"Several camps and gravel roads have been closed since
Saturday and remain closed. It is still raining heavily.... We are told that
the rain is expected to stop on Wednesday," said KNP spokesperson Ike
Phaahla.
Three children were killed when their homes collapsed during
rain in Limpopo over the weekend, a spokesperson said on Sunday.
Vhembe district municipality spokesperson Matodzi Mulaudzi
said the municipality's disaster management team received reports about the
deaths of two boys and a girl on Sunday morning.
Mpumalanga police spokesperson Colonel Leonard Hlathi said
three people were killed when lightning struck their houses in Piet Retief
during thunderstorms on Saturday morning.
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- SAPA
