The death toll from the floods has risen to 70, the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs said on Friday.
It said this had emerged from reports presented to a meeting called by the National Disaster Management Centre in Pretoria earlier in the day.
Most of the deaths were recorded in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape, the department said in a statement.
“The incidents in the reports covered a range of natural disasters from December 2010 and included floods, lightning and thunderstorms.”
The number of displaced and affected households now stood at 8 400.
Government support had been comprised of temporary accommodation in public buildings and tents, food parcels and counselling.
Reports from the Department of Water Affairs said it was mindful of the impact of the heavy rains on the flow of acid mine drainage, and was monitoring the situation.
The Department of Agriculture had issued an alert to farmers on the handling of the outbreak of vector-borne livestock diseases such as Rift Valley Fever.
Preventative measures such as vaccination and vector control were stressed to ensure the health of livestock.
The meeting resolved to set up a joint operations centre to better coordinate government actions in the current spate of natural disasters. – Sapa