The search for the 12 people still missing after Christmas Eve flash floods in Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal, has entered its fourth day.
Relatives say it is agonising. Among the missing are three relatives of Winnie Jooste, who tragically lost their lives in the calamity, and seven others, including three children, whose whereabouts remain unknown after the bakkie they were in was swept away.
Having spent three days combing through the affected area, Jooste expresses the family’s exhaustion and profound distress, making it challenging to even contemplate the upcoming new year.
“We’ve walked three times down here up to the gravesite. And it’s difficult because trees have fallen over, there’s debris. The place is wet. We’re just requesting that the municipality give us more support, maybe they can bring in more search teams. So at least we can have closure and we can have peace within our hearts. Because this has been a very tragic day for us. As Ladysmith, especially as the Roosboom people, I think our community has lost the most members. It’s painful.”
The bodies of six victims have been recovered so far after the Bellspruit burst its banks due to heavy rains in a severe thunderstorm.
Search and rescue teams, including members of the police and emergency service IPSS, are continuing their search for the missing today.
IPSS spokesperson Tereza van den Berg says they received a report on Tuesday of a motorist who went missing on the Newcastle side of the town.
“And we got a call from community members that’s on the way to, I think, the Newcastle area. That there’s a car in the middle of the river. But when we got there, unfortunately, the levels of the water were still very high. There was one lady who was in that vehicle when it left home and she was never seen again. So, we’ve got a team in that area that’s searching for that missing lady as well. The water has subsided a bit so they could get to the vehicle but were searching for the lady.”
