- The SA Weather Service says several provinces will experience up to 80% rain on Wednesday.
- There were Level 2 Yellow and Level 5 Orange Warnings for different parts of the country.
- In the Eastern Cape, a private hospital in Queenstown was flooded.
The Free State, Eastern Cape, Gauteng, parts of Mpumalanga, the Northern Cape, Limpopo and KwaZulu-Natal will experience rainfall of up to 80% on Wednesday, according to the South African Weather Service.
The weather service has issued a level 5 orange warning for the Eastern Cape, meaning showers and thunderstorms will become widespread in the province. It is expected to cause the flooding of roads and some settlements.
For the eastern parts of the North West, Free State and Northern Cape, a Level 2 Yellow Warning has been issued for heavy rain.
A yellow level 2 means that the rain is localized, while an orange level 5 means that the weather conditions are generalized.
“The impact [of the weather conditions] it is not minimal where a level 2 yellow warning is issued. It means you will be isolated in the same area. The impact is severe, where we have a level 5 orange, but it will be widespread.
“It has nothing to do with the severity of the weather,” the weather office said.
Motorists have been warned to use caution on the roads.
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“It’s not advisable to drive in flooded areas because you don’t know what might be under the waterlogging. There should be enough distance between the cars… don’t speed up, so you can see what’s going on in front.” the weather service said.
Paul Fick, the spokesman for emergency medical services (EMS), told News24 that several areas in Queenstown, in the Eastern Cape, were already flooded, including the local private hospital.
Fick said the service responded to eight traffic accidents, including one on the N2 involving 13 vehicles.
“This morning we responded to several accidents on the N2, involving 13 cars and two trucks. The municipal garbage dump caught fire, and smoke billowed onto the highway and caused a visual obstruction. [and] vehicles collided. They were not fatal,” he said.
Aid organization Gift of the Givers is appealing to donors to help with humanitarian aid such as hot meals, blankets and mattresses after hundreds of people were displaced due to heavy rains in Komani.
On Wednesday afternoon, the organization donated essential items from its east London warehouse. Coordinator Corene Conradie said residents were temporarily housed in neighboring community halls.
The department for cooperative governance and traditional affairs in KwaZulu-Natal said its disaster management teams were ready to respond to incidents.
“The department calls on communities to exercise the utmost caution as weather conditions pose a serious risk to human life. Parents are urged to ensure that students use safe routes on their way to school and back,” the department said.
