Peter Dickson
Still weary from flood relief and mercy missions in Mozambique, South African Air Force (SAAF) helicopter pilots were this week plucking stranded victims from raging river waters in southern KwaZulu- Natal and northern Transkei.
Pilots of the SAAF’s Durban-based 15 Squadron rescued 13 pupils and teachers from Riverside Primary in Port Saint John’s who were stranded amid rising waters and cut off from the town after an access bridge was flooded.
Thousands of people in northern Transkei were reported to be trapped on Wednesday as heavy rains caused rivers to burst their banks amid the highest monthly rainfall recorded in almost 40 years.
Road traffic inspectorate representative Vijen Murugan said heavy rain had fallen since Monday night. The Mzlinta River, which flows into KwaZulu-Natal from the Eastern Cape, had burst its banks in Kokstad.
A woman was rescued after being swept away on the Eastern Cape side of the river, while cara-vans and earthworks machinery weighing tons were carried away downstream by the force of the rising water. A number of roads have been closed in anticipation of mudslides.
“Traffic authorities, police and other emergency personnel have been placed on full alert to monitor the situation,” Murugan says.