The Maluti-A-Phofung Municipality in the Free State is currently awaiting a comprehensive report detailing the extent of the damage caused by a destructive storm that recently swept through the area.
The storm wreaked havoc destroying more than 200 houses, a school, a community hall, and several businesses in Intabazwe, Harrismith, on Tuesday. Consequently, many families have been left homeless and in dire need of assistance.
Mandlankosi Dlamini, the municipality’s chief whip, stated that they are in the process of conducting assessments to determine the full scope of the destruction. Once these preliminary assessments are finalized, the findings will be presented to the Maluti-A-Phofung council for review.
Subsequently, the district and provincial government authorities will step in to assess the total cost of the damage. This collaborative effort will enable the municipality to take necessary measures to assist affected households.
The storm’s impact on the region has been severe, and local authorities are diligently working to ensure that appropriate assistance is provided to those in need.
MEDIA RELEASE: First Spring thunderstorms cause widespread wind damage pic.twitter.com/L6LRriy8xL
— SA Weather Service (@SAWeatherServic) September 20, 2023
Free State Tomorrow ‘s Weather overview: 21/09/2023 pic.twitter.com/t7o3iCdd2q
— SA Weather Service (@SAWeatherServic) September 20, 2023
Warning of more storms as summer approaches
The South African Weather Service (SAWS) has warned that storms will be more fierce as summer approaches.
It says more thunderstorms can be expected across the country.
This follows Tuesday night’s thunderstorms accompanied by strong winds across parts of the country. In Gauteng, several properties were damaged, trees uprooted and roofs of shacks blown away in parts the City of Tshwane.
A substation was also burnt after lightning struck it. Other parts of the country that last night’s storms affected include KwaZulu-Natal, Free State and North-West.
Forecaster Lehlogonolo Thobela says Mpumalanga and Gauteng experienced damaging storms.
“Thunderstorms are yet to be experienced much more as we move into the summer months. Yes, we are still in early spring but this is quite seasonal with the spring starting and we’ve had our first thunderstorms especially over Gauteng.”
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Reporting by Nontsokolo Stemmere
