Sixteen people were killed during a thunderstorm that wreaked havoc in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal over the weekend, authorities said on Monday.
Five people were killed by lightning, four were washed away in a car and the remaining seven were believed to have drowned, said Lennox Mabaso, spokesperson for the Local Government Ministry.
The four were going to a wedding when their car was swept away in Durban’s KwaMashu area.
Another person, Julius Dlamini (60), was walking on a road in Inchanga, on the outskirts of Durban, when he was washed away by the rising river water. A large portion of the road was also swept away.
His body was found on a river bank on Sunday night.
The provincial minister of social development, Meshack Radebe, who visited families in the Inchanga area on Monday morning, told the South African Press Association: ”My heart is breaking for the people here. When I close my eyes, this nightmare comes back to me … of fellow human beings dying and being struck by lightning.
”How does one go to sleep forgetting how these people died, how the family of four were struck by lightning? You can’t escape. It will be with you always.”
He said the tragedy was enormous and ”because of my job and the things I see, I sometimes have to be admitted into hospital for stress and depression”.
A spokesperson for the Social Development Department, who did not want to be named, said residents were in shock.
”A lot of lives have been affected and these deaths are senseless.”
On initial inspection on Sunday, authorities confirmed eight people had died.
Among them was a family of four who were struck by lightning inside their Ndwedwe home. Another man was killed after being struck by lightning in KwaKhulusi, another died in Dalton, and a person was killed in Vryheid.
In Pietermaritzburg, a man who had apparently been walking home during the downpour on Saturday night accidentally fell into a manhole and died.
The freak storm wreaked havoc in the province and was described by residents and officials as one of the worst they had seen.
Trees were uprooted, roofs caved in, walls and houses collapsed, and in some areas water mains had burst.
Premier Sbu Ndebele said about 2 000 people were affected by the disaster and that Ndwedwe, Dalton, Pietermaritzburg and now Inchanga were the worst affected areas.
In Inchanga alone, Radebe said at least 1 000 homes were destroyed.
”People are sad here. They are walking around trying to pick up the pieces. We want them to know they are not alone. We as government are here with them to help them.”
He said it was difficult for him to see ”my people” losing everything.
”Those with homes they had for over 40 years watched them slip away as they lost everything, including identity documents.”
The Social Development Department would at the end of January re-issue pension cards and identity documents to those who had lost them during the storm.
Radebe was due to visit the KwaNyavu area of Camperdown once he had completed his visit to Inchanga.
He thanked social workers for their dedication and commitment.
”I’m very proud of my team who go out at any odd hour just to lend a helping hand. They have gone far beyond their call of duty and I thank them for their love and passion for the people.”
Tents had been set up to accommodate the homeless and food parcels and clothing had been distributed. — Sapa