Heavy rainfall on Saturday night has resulted in severe flooding across several roads in Durban and its coastal areas. Reports indicate flooded houses in the northern part of the City and on the north coast, extending to Ballito.
Emergency Services are working to evacuate residents from flooded homes in Verulam and surrounding areas.
The Thongathi area has seen two people go missing. The heavy rains have not only caused destruction but have left residents without water, complicating efforts to clean their homes. The extent of the damage is visible in muddy, devastated homes where people are left with nothing.
Khethelo Mthethwa, a resident in the affected area, shares his account of the tragic incident.
“They tried telling him to go out of the house; he didn’t respond. That was the last I heard of him. I think he tried to use the window to escape; that’s how he got washed away.”
In Zwelisha, just outside Verulam north of Durban, a shack collapses, claiming two lives. Ncamsile Zungu and her grandson Selu were sleeping when their home gave way.
The son of the deceased, Bonga Zungu, expresses frustration at the lack of assistance. “This is the second time this is happening. The first time it collapsed, and they rebuilt. Now, this time it collapses, and there are lives lost.”
Emergency Services, including Reaction Unit South Africa, were active throughout the night, responding to multiple calls. Devan Perumal, the Operations Manager at Reaction Unit South Africa, described the recovery efforts – “We identified a granny and the child lying in the bed. It appears as if they were asleep when this happened.”
Tragically, police in KwaZulu-Natal have opened an inquest docket following the discovery of three bodies, potentially those of the missing Bergville family. The vehicle recovered from a stream along the N11 road matches the description of the missing family’s car.
The bodies of a man, a woman, and a toddler were found in a decomposing state.
As the search for the missing individuals is expected to resume when the water subsides, residents who have lost everything appeal to the government for assistance.
