FLOOD WRAP: Counting the cost of heavy rains

Persistent thundershowers have wreaked havoc across the country, with 14 lives that have been lost, homes submerged, vehicles swept away and agriculture affected by floodwaters.

On Monday, government declared a national state of disaster to enable a coordinated response to the impact of floods affecting Mpumalanga, the Eastern Cape, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, the Northern Cape, and North West provinces.

Mpumalanga and the Eastern Cape provinces are the most affected.

In Mpumalanga, three people died and four are still missing, where heavy rains left a trail of destruction in the Nkomazi, Bushbuckridge and Mbombela municipalities.

The executive Mayor of the Nkomazi local municipality, Phindile Magagula says 45 families have been accomodated at a home based care centre and another 51 families are kept at a local school after their homes were flooded.

Flooding in Mpumalanga has caused more than R300 million in damage:

In Gauteng, heavy rains have claimed at least seven lives over the past few days. Two people drowned in the Apies River in Tshwane while five bodies were retrieved from a stream in Olievenhoutbosch.

Heavy rains in Gauteng:

Heavy rain and flooding have claimed four lives in the Eastern Cape. Three victims are from Chris Hani District Municipality, while the fourth one is from the Mbashe Local Municipality under Amathole District.

Eastern Cape floods claim four lives

The Limpopo Disaster Unit is co-ordinating the rescue of a man who has been stranded in the Letaba river in Tzaneen since Saturday.  While, the South African National Parks (SANParks) has refuted claims on social media that there have been flood-related fatalities at the Kruger National Park after management temporarily closed some of its entrances and camps amid strong river flows.

Heavy rains damage roads in Limpopo

The KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Disaster Management team personnel are continuing to search for two people who were washed away by heavy rains at the Umkhanyakude District . According to reports, one person was swept away at Ngwavuma and another at Mtubatuba.

PHOTO GALLERY: Floods in KZN

Compiled by Lebo Tshangela.