At least seven people died as floods and snow hit, and schoolchildren were wiped out
Cape Town, South Africa (AP) – At least seven people died from floods in South Africa, officials said Tuesday, officials said on Tuesday.
An unknown child was missing, the provincial government said in a statement that a bus carrying high school students was swept through floods in the Eastern Cape. According to the South African National Taxi Commission, three children were rescued from a tree, which the commission said the bus was operated by one of the members.
The Disaster Response Team has been activated in the province on the South Coast.
Six people died in floods in Mthatha, Eastern Cape Town, where houses and cars were flooded. The provincial government said the seventh body was found near the town of Tosoro, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) northwest of Mthatha.
It said it was searching for minibuses carried by minibuses that were swept Tuesday morning. Taxi Commission Santaco said it was unclear how many children were on the 22 buses when it was swept away floods by a bridge near Mthatha.
“Witnesses at the scene reported seeing at least three (children) clinging to the trees and seeking help,” Santaco said. “Three people were rescued since then.”
“This is a devastating reminder of the power of nature,” said Oscar Mabuyane, Prime Minister of the East Point.
Five other people were killed in a car accident in the Eastern Cape when a minibus taxi was overturned on Tuesday, according to provincial transport ministry spokesman Unathi Binqose. He said the minibus driver was trying to prevent a tree from falling on the road.
The South African Meteorological Agency predicts that rain and snow have been devastating for several days in the Eastern Cape and adjacent eastern coast KwaZulu-Natal. Part of the main highway connecting the two provinces is also activated due to snow and disaster response teams in KwaZulu-Natal.
South Africa occasionally has snowfall in certain places, but authorities have been warning that a particularly strong cold front is about to attack the country.
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