Two girls, six and 15, died in floods in Soweto on Thursday, Johannesburg emergency services said.
Spokesperson Percy Morokane said the six-year-old child was a passenger in one of three vehicles, including a bus, which were trapped on Ncube Drive by floodwaters. Her body was recovered by emergency workers.
The body of the 15-year-old girl was found in Zone 10, Meadowlands.
A 20-day-old baby, a taxi driver and a cyclist from Mfulo South were still missing.
Morokane said the missing baby was aboard the bus trapped on Ncube Drive and the cyclist was from Mfulo South.
Forty people were injured when they tried to jump off the bus in a panic. They were taken to Chris Hani Baragwanath hospital.
”I’m not sure about the taxi driver. We stopped the search at 1am this morning, and resumed it again at 7.30am,” Morokane said.
He said he was not sure about how the flood victims had died.
”We will find out about their cause of deaths as we sift through information, all those details are very unclear at the moment.”
At least five areas in Soweto were flooded after heavy rains. They were Mofolo, Dobsonville, Dube, Orlando and Meadowlands.
A joint operational centre was established at the Jabulani fire station and was being manned by Johannesburg emergency services, police and volunteers from a 4×4 club.
A search-and-rescue operation was being conducted by the emergency workers and two police helicopters were in the air helping with the operation.
”This was one of the worst thunderstorms in a few years. Sowetans have not seen something like this in a while,” Morokane said.
He said most bridges in Soweto were impassable, adding that the overflow was partially exacerbated by people throwing rubbish into stormwater drains along rivers.
”We are committing all available resources to the new disaster in Soweto. We would like the full cooperation of all Sowetans in this time of dilemma.”
Disaster management officers were deployed to Braam Fisherville next to Dobsonville, where several houses were flooded.
They would assess the needs of the people and provide relief where necessary, Morokane said.
Netcare 911 spokesperson Nick Dollman said the Klip River had burst its banks between Orlando and Dube in Soweto.
More storms on the way
The South African Weather Services said more thunderstorms were expected by Friday afternoon.
”Gauteng can expect slow-moving thunderstorms in various areas,” said forecaster Lulama Menze.
She said flooding normally occurred because of slow-moving thunderstorms.
”When storms stay in a certain area for too long, there isn’t enough storm drains or run-off which can take the capacity of the water. That’s when we get flooding.”
She said proper warning could not be given on time because slow-moving thunderstorms were difficult to track.
”We will only know as it happens,” Menze said.
Zuma to visit affected families
Meanwhile, African National Congress president Jacob Zuma will visit the flood-ravaged areas of Soweto on Friday, a party spokesperson said.
Zizi Kodwa said Zuma would be accompanied by Johannesburg Mayor Amos Masondo, as well as various provincial ministers.
”He will be visiting families affected by the flood and will be accompanied by officials to see what can be done to help the communities,” Kodwa said.
They will be guided through Soweto by local leadership. — Sapa