By Mandla Khoza
Mbombela - At least three people were killed while 100 households were displaced when floods ravaged different areas in Mpumalanga on Tuesday.
According to the South African Police Service's diving unit provincial coordinator, Captain Pottie Potgieter, one person drowned in Greylingstad near Standerton, while two others drowned in Volksrust and Amsterdam.
“Three people have died from the floods since Tuesday. We have rescued a number of people in the Lowveld especially, Komatipoort areas. In Tonga a car was washed away while a man tried to cross the over flowing river while in KaMhlushwa and Naas seven people were found on top of their roofs after their houses were washed away,” said Potgieter.
He also said in Mananga road and Strydomblock near Malalane cars were washed away but their owners managed to be rescued.
Nkomazi local municipality spokesman Cyril Ripinga said two children went missing in Mangweni village on Tuesday, while houses were also floating at Orlando informal settlement in Komatipoort.
“A mother from Mangweni came back from work and found that her house was gone and there's water everywhere. She stated that her children had been in the house when she left. We are now still searching for the two children.
"Although no one has died in Orlando informal settlement, their houses have been washed away and they are in water,” said Ripinga.
He said the municipality was still responding to calls from different areas and the challenge is that some communities have been locked in because rivers are overflowing with some bridges washed away.
“A bridge that connects Dludluma and Ngwenyeni near Komatipoort has been washed away. Mlumati bridge between Schoemansdal and Driekoppies is overflowing. In Mananga road to the Mananga border to Swaziland a bridge near Masibekela is overflowing, completely closing the road," said Ripinga.
Ripinga said he could not say how many people were admitted in hospital due to the floods.
“There's more than 10 people who were either washed away while in their cars and survived with injuries. Some houses fell on them and that is why we are calling for all people staying in low-lying areas or next to rivers to be extra careful.
"Those on the roads should make sure they don't try crossing bridges trusting their cars because the water is so strong,” said Ripinga.
Ripinga also warned that people are going to experience water shortages in the next week since water pumps have also been washed away or buried in sand.
"What we can suspect now is that we are going to have water shortages here. Our water pumps in all the villages have been either washed away or buried by soil. We are also warning people of water related sicknesses …," said Ripinga.
The Department of Cooperative Governance on Tuesday issued a warning of persisting heavy rains in the province between Tuesday and Friday. – SAnews.gov.za
