/ 12 December 2006

KwaZulu-Natal flooding leaves hundreds homeless

Three people, including a three-month-old baby, have died and more than 700 have been left homeless after severe flooding in KwaZulu-Natal, the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) reported on Monday.

Two people drowned after the Bhanya River burst its banks at Bhekuzulu township in Vryheid, the SABC said.

Residents most affected by the flooding are in the Utrecht, Vryheid and Emondlo areas.

The KwaZulu-Natal department of social welfare was on Monday handing out tents to hundreds of residents at Berouw in Utrecht following the heavy storms at the weekend.

The SABC quoted the South African Weather Service as saying it had been the sixth consecutive weekend it had rained in the province — and the trend is likely to continue.

On Tuesday morning, evening showers and storms were predicted for the Vryheid area from Thursday, with scattered showers over the weekend.

KwaZulu-Natal local government minister Mike Mabuyakhulu said the government will start building new homes for the destitute. He said one of the first houses to be built will be for a relative of a man who drowned near Bhekuzulu.