By Bronwyn Gerretsen and Kamini Padayachee
Seven people died in strong winds and heavy rain that lashed KwaZulu-Natal yesterday. Roads and rivers were flooded, vehicles were swept away, walls collapsed, cars collided and roofs were blown off.
The wind and rain moved quickly up the coast, resulting in flooding in the south, closed roads in Durban and causing the harbour to shut down, and tearing roofs off houses in KwaDukuza as it moved north.
It continued raining in most of the province even after the worst of the downpours had eased.
Wind speeds reached up to 70 knots at lunch time at Richards Bay harbour, while planes were grounded at Durban International Airport, disrupting travel plans.
E-mails saying that a cyclone would hit the province had people in a frenzy, worrying about their homes, children and pets. However, the weather service dismissed the mails as a hoax, saying the weather resulted from a coastal low-pressure system.
"The system moved up the KZN coast and a ridge of high pressure behind it resulted in a strong on-shore flow and heavy rains," said meteorologist Karl Loots.
The wind gusted up to 60km/h in parts of Durban, with 40mm of rain falling by the late afternoon. Paddock and Margate recorded 125mm and 100mm of rain respectively.
A motorist drowned in the Port Shepstone area when his car was swept into a river and a schoolgirl was presumed dead after being washed away while crossing a river on her way to school.
At KwaDukuza, a man was killed when a wall collapsed on to the car he and three others were sitting in. His body was cut out of the vehicle, said chief fire officer Adrian Barnes.
He said the storm had not lasted long, but many homes had had their roofs blown off, almost 30 trees had blown over and a trailer on a vehicle had been blown off a bridge.
"We also had flash flooding because the drains were not coping with all the water - we had to eventually open the drains to help let the water through. The storm moved so quickly that it got from Ballito to Stanger in 45 minutes."
Netcare911 and ER24 paramedics attended to several accidents in the province in the pouring rain. The accidents claimed at least three lives with scores more injured.
Roads throughout KZN were closed due to flooding, fallen trees and accidents.
More than 100 families in the eThekwini municipal area were left homeless after the roofs of their homes were blown away.
Speaker James Nxumalo said executive committee members had visited affected people at Mariannhill, Molweni, Klaarwater, Inchanga, Mpumulanga, Hammarsdale and KwaNgcolosi.
"At least 123 families have been affected as the roofs of their homes have been blown away or their homes have been damaged," he said.
"We are expecting more reports to come in from the Phoenix area, as we have been told that residents in that area were also affected. The municipal disaster management team is compiling the numbers of people affected."
Nxumalo said arrangements were being made last night for the affected people to be placed with neighbours or at halls.
"We will prepare for tents and food to be taken to these areas," he said.
Robin Barnsley, president of the agricultural union Kwanalu, said the downpours and strong winds had disrupted farming throughout the province, particularly on the coast. However, no damage was reported.
"It is very cold here in the Midlands and we have had reports that there is snow on parts of the Drakensberg, so if the weather clears tonight then there is a good chance the Midlands will be covered in frost tomorrow, which is very unseasonal."
Imtiaz Sooliman, founder of the Gift of the Givers Foundation, said they had spent yesterday collecting and storing food parcels for people affected by the rain.
He said R8,9 million worth of aid was on hand.
The weather service has predicted a 30 percent chance of rain on the South Coast for today and 60 percent in the north. Temperatures should reach 22176C in Durban, with a minimum of 16176C expected.
The weather was expected to warm up tomorrow, with a maximum of 26°C and no rain predicted.
- This article was originally published on page 1 of The Mercury on November 20, 2009
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