Tragedy continues to befall KwaZulu-Natal after a nine-year-old boy drowned while playing in a water-filled excavation hole in Emona, Tongaat, on Wednesday, authorities say.
IPSS Medical Rescue said when it arrived at the scene, it established the young boy had been playing in a large water-filled excavation hole "when he got into difficulty and drowned".
The IPSS added his body was discovered by a girl who alerted emergency services.
"The body of water appears to be an excavation site that filled with water following the heavy rains experienced on the North Coast this week," the medical rescue unit said in a statement.
Tongaat police have opened an inquest.
The tragedy follows hot on the heels of the discovery on Wednesday of the body of a seven-year-old boy who was swept off the Soweto bridge in Darnell, KwaZulu-Natal, while walking from school on Tuesday.
This as the KwaZulu-Natal provincial government said it expected damage to homes and infrastructure to run into the millions following Tuesday's tornado which ripped through New Hanover, Pietermaritzburg.
On Wednesday, News24 reported two people were confirmed dead, while several others were injured.
Regarding Tuesday's storm, the department said disaster teams would remain on the ground to provide support to affected communities.
Co-ordinated response units would be channeled via the human settlements, transport, social development, education, health and public works departments as well as municipalities.
Severe thunderstorms are expected to continue on Wednesday afternoon in parts of KZN, while heavy rainfall, leading to localised flooding, is anticipated for Thursday and Friday.
