The metro has announced that it is on high alert following Wednesday\u2019s disastrous floods which claimed four lives.<\/p>\n
The thunderstorm which started in the late afternoon and lasted a number of hours left a trail of disaster in various parts of Ekurhuleni.<\/p>
\u201cThis is a very sad situation.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is extremely sad that so many lives were lost as a result of the heavy rain.<\/p>
\u201cOur sincere condolences go to their families,\u201d said Ekurhuleni\u2019s mayor Clr Mzwandile Masina, adding that it was also regrettable that so many people lost their belongings in this incident.<\/p>\n
The rain started in the southern parts of the metro and moved northwards.<\/p>\n
The metro\u2019s call centre started receiving frantic calls from members of the public and immediately dispatched district managers to monitor the situation.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt about 6pm we received a high rate of distress calls with members of the public reporting incidents of flooding and possible drownings,\u201d mayoral spokesman Zweli Dlamini said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe then sent out teams to hot-spot areas for rescue missions.<\/p>\n
\u201cAmong the areas that were mainly affected were Linksfield, Edenvale, Tembisa, Benoni, Wattville and Boksburg.\u201d<\/p>\n
A man drowned in Ravensklip in Boksburg, a woman was killed when a truck plunged into stationary vehicles at the Linksfield interchange, the same area where a body of a man was found by emergency services when rescuing trapped motorists.<\/p>\n
The fourth individual was struck by lightning at Sethokga Hostel in Tembisa.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe also provided emergency relief to 105 people who were displaced when their informal structures were flooded in the Makause informal settlement in Primrose.<\/p>\n
\u201cHowever, they refused temporary accommodation in fear of losing their belongings which remained trapped in their structures,\u201d said Dlamini.<\/p>\n
He added that railway tracks were also washed away at Ravensklip in Boksburg.<\/p>\n
The metro, in collaboration with the Gauteng provincial government, has set up a joint operation centre in Bedfordview and emergency services teams remain on high alert.<\/p>\n
Tailings dams which are overflowing due to the flooding in the Knights and Makause areas are also a major threat to residents.<\/p>\n
A technical team made up of Ekurhuleni, Gauteng provincial government and the departments of water and mining resources have gone out to assess the situation and determine possible intervention.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, mopping up of flooded areas continues.<\/p>\n
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